Virus Strains U.S. Health System With Supply, Test Shortage

Inside hospitals, the strain of uncertainty was growing. Hospitals are getting fewer than half the N95 respirator masks they’re ordering, said Chaun Powell, a vice president at Premier Inc., which helps 4,000 hospitals purchase supplies.

“They’ll get down to you know, a mask box or two,” Powell said. Running out could force hospitals to cancel operations. “We’re having to juggle and ship a lot of very small shipments just to make sure the procedures can be executed,” he said.

The nation’s largest union of nurses said members were concerned that inadequate training, access to protective equipment, and communications might endanger people. Only 63% of nurses had access to N95 masks on their unit, according to a survey the union published Thursday.

Across the U.S., most coronavirus tests must still go to state labs.

New Jersey officials received their second batch of tests from the CDC, allowing the state lab to perform an additional 216 tests, Christopher Neuwirth, assistant Health Department commissioner, said at a news conference. It’s the only lab in the state testing for Covid-19.

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