As hospitals increase personal protective equipment (PPE) orders, some experts are concerned about the possibility of price gouging, supply shortages and hoarding, according to an article on the Modern Healthcare website.
“There is the right opportunity to misuse the situation,” Jeffrey Lerner, CEO of ECRI Institute, said in the article.
ECRI is tracking PPE price information through its Ebola PPE Price Index.
Most hospitals and clinics are increasing PPE spending in anticipation of Ebola cases, the article said. For example, a hospital planning for a team of two nurses, one safety-protocol observer, physicians and a respiratory therapist will need at least 35 PPE suits each day.
A hospital in Kansas recently placed an order for $100,000 in jumpsuits, hoods and respiratory devices that it says would be needed to treat one patient for two weeks.
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