Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association Embarks on New Partnership with PPE.Exchange, a Global Online Vendor and Validated Source for Acquiring Personal Protective Equipment

November 18, 2020

New Relationship Benefits Virginia Health Care Providers, Businesses, and Organizations in Need of Personal Protective Equipment Sourced from Vetted Suppliers Amid the Ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic

 RICHMOND, VA – As part of its ongoing work to address personal protective equipment (PPE) supply chain challenges exposed during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) has entered into a new partnership with PPE.Exchange, a Seattle-based firm that operates a global, online portal to connect health care providers and other organizations with vetted suppliers of personal protective equipment. This new arrangement is being facilitated through the VHHA Shared Services Corporation to assist health care providers, businesses, and other Virginia organizations in obtaining the PPE needed to protect staff, patients, students, customers, and others during the pandemic.

“The interruption of traditional supply chains relied upon by health care providers to obtain PPE was one of the many serious complications associated with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic this year,” said VHHA President and CEO Sean T. Connaughton. “This impacted health care providers most directly, but also affected many other non-health care businesses and organizations which found themselves in need of PPE to protect their staff and adhere to COVID-19 safety protocols. Through this exciting new partnership, VHHA will function as a conduit to connect health care providers and organizations across many other industries to a reliable pipeline for acquiring PPE supplies from vetted vendors through PPE.Exchange.”

PPE.Exchange is a digital marketplace that connects PPE purchasers with a network of more than 300 verified vendors, suppliers, and manufacturers while protecting customers by setting industry standards for PPE quality and vendor verification. With integration to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) database through the OpenFDA portal, compliance and product certification are validated and recorded in real-time on the secure PPE.Exchange encrypted blockchain. PPE.Exchange platform users have access to a variety of certified PPE and medical supplies and the ability to compare product features such as price, minimum order quantities, certifications, and more. This user-friendly platform, which is free to access, enables customers to easily place orders through a secure check out process that incorporates a built-in escrow and smart contract system.

“It became clear early in the COVID-19 pandemic that many organizations struggled to identify alternate sources for PPE when traditional supply chains were unable to meet consumer demand,” said PPE.Exchange co-founder JT Garwood. “We created PPE.Exchange to address the major challenge of vetting new suppliers and providing transparency to the process of obtaining PPE supplies. Our primary goal with PPE.Exchange is to provide a customer-friendly, secure tool to help organizations across industries procure the supplies they need to protect their workforce.”

Through this partnership, VHHA will work with PPE.Exchange to market the platform to health care providers, colleges and universities, large and small employers, and other businesses and organizations that need PPE to protect their workforce, patients, and customers. One key aspect of the partnership is the development of collaborative purchases to help smaller organizations achieve the scale necessary to purchase PPE amid increasing demand. Interested organizations can also purchase directly through the platform at any time. This includes organizations such as assisted living facilities, dental practices, and other organizations that need supplies to help limit the spread of COVID-19. Any organization interested in learning more about PPE.Exchange and purchasing supplies is strongly encouraged to contact the VHHA team to learn more.

In addition to this new partnership, VHHA is also collaborating on an initiative with Genedge and Go Virginia to support manufacturer retooling to produce PPE; is working with Richmond-based Olivian, a company that makes medical-grade face masks, as part of broader efforts to enhance access to PPE supplies; and with Contact Harald, the developer of a Bluetooth-based workforce technology solution for contact tracing.

About VHHA: The Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association is an alliance of 110 hospitals and 26 health delivery systems that develops and advocates for sound health care policy in the Commonwealth. Its mission is to achieve excellence in both health care and health to make Virginia the healthiest state in the nation. Its vision is through collaboration with members and stakeholders, to ensure the sustainability of Virginia health care system, transform the delivery of care to promote lower costs and high value across the continuum of care, and to improve health for all Virginians. Connect with VHHA through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

 About PPE.Exchange: PPE.Exchange is a technology startup aimed at solving pandemic driven issues at the highest level. PPE.Exchange technology has enabled the discovery and verification of more than 1,000 PPE vendors. Due to its vendor network and data, PPE.Exchange seamlessly provides solutions to healthcare entities and promotes supply chain transparency. Today, PPE.Exchange is publicly partnered with one-fourth of the nation’s state hospital associations. Through partnerships, as well as other avenues, PPE.Exchange supplies more than 1,400 organizations with the equipment they need most. Read more about PPE.Exchange by visiting PPE.Exchange’s LinkedIn and Newsroom.

 About VHHA Shared Services Corporation: Founded in 1980 by the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association, VHHA Shared Services delivers an array of products and resources to help Virginia hospitals and health systems improve their clinical, financial and operational performance.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Julian Walker
Vice President of Communications
(804) 297-3193 office
(804) 304-7402 mobile
jtwalker@vhha.com