NC only received a fraction of federal PPE request, not expecting more, Gov. Cooper says
At a Friday press conference, Gov. Roy Cooper said the state has now received three shipments of medical and personal protective equipment from the strategic national stockpile. He said that’s around 33% of what was requested from the federal government and they’ve been told not to expect any more supplies.
The state is currently reporting around 600,000 masks, 400,000 gloves and 240,000 N95 masks received from the federal stockpile, after requesting 500,000 of each. It has also only received around 90,000 gowns.
“I don’t think any state would tell you that they have everything they need right now,” Cooper said. “In fact, most states are on the open market, realizing that the federal government just simply doesn’t have it to give to them right now.”
Director of Emergency Management Mike Sprayberry added: “The governor’s on target. I don’t think that you’re going to find a state that will tell you they received all the personal protective equipment they require in order to stand up an adequate response to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Cooper and Sprayberry said the state has moved to ordering supplies and encouraging manufacturers to produce gloves and other needed materials for the state.
Sprayberry said the state has ordered around $100 million in supplies but hasn’t received much of them yet.
“Everybody expected more from the strategic national stockpile, we know that’s depleted now,” he said. “Nationally, statewide and locally we’re all competing now to get those types of medical supplies and resources.”
White House adviser Jared Kushner said it is encouraging states to assess their needs before trying to access supplies from the federal stockpile.
“The notion of the federal stockpile was it’s supposed to be our stockpile. It’s not supposed to be states’ stockpiles that they then use,” Kushner said in a White House press conference Thursday evening.
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The state expects to get more ventilators on the open market next week and Sprayberry said it already has a significant number of them on hand. There are 2,818 ventilators in hospitals across the state, The N&O previously reported. The National Guard is helping with unloading and checking all supply shipments and Cooper said there have been no reports of dry rotted or expired equipment.
The governor said the federal government has prioritized places with a more acute need, like New York, but N.C. could have a similar situation in the near future.
“The federal government has given us their version of their priorities and they’re putting their equipment and supplies in the places that are feeling the most acute need right now,” Cooper said. “But we know in North Carolina through our modeling that that kind of situation is coming toward us.”
He said his team will be working on “more modeling data concerning North Carolina, how much movement is going on.”
Cooper’s administration confirmed after the press conference that some of the modeling data will be from cellphone data, WRAL reported Friday.
“I’ve got to be honest, we’ve got to do better with complying with this order,” said Mandy Cohen, Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.
This story was originally published April 3, 2020 at 3:53 PM with the headline "NC only received a fraction of federal PPE request, not expecting more, Gov. Cooper says."
