WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) and Xochitl Torres Small (D-N.M.) requested the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) leadership release the state of New Mexico’s full allotment of personal protective equipment (PPE), such as protective gloves and masks, for health care providers responding to the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) emergency.
Currently, the state of New Mexico has received 25 percent of its full allotment of PPE from the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), a federal repository of drugs and medical supplies that can be tapped if a public health emergency could exhaust local supplies. The delegation wrote to HHS leadership that “it is critical to ensure that New Mexico continues to have sufficient PPE supplies.”
“We strongly urge you to release New Mexico’s full allotment of PPE and work with the state to find other sources to help replenish their supplies. We believe this request is consistent with the treatment received by other states and any action you take now will help our state as confirmed coronavirus cases continue to mount,” wrote the members of Congress in a letter to HHS Secretary Alex Azar and Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Robert Kadlec.
The full letter can be found below and HERE.
Dear Secretary Azar and Assistant Secretary Kadlec,
We write with an urgent request from the State of New Mexico to fulfill Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham's request for our state’s full allotment of personal protective equipment (PPE) for health care providers.
We understand that New Mexico received 25% of its allotment from the strategic national stockpile yesterday, but it is critical to ensure that New Mexico continues to have sufficient PPE supplies.
We strongly urge you to release New Mexico’s full allotment of PPE and work with the state to find other sources to help replenish their supplies. We believe this request is consistent with the treatment received by other states and any action you take now will help our state as confirmed coronavirus cases continue to mount.
We appreciate your agency’s efforts to date to assist New Mexico during the novel coronavirus pandemic and we look forward to your prompt action on this request. If you have any questions about this request please do not hesitate to contact us or the New Mexico Department of Health.
Sincerely,
