Seven Northeast states are forming a consortium to purchase about $5 billion in medical equipment and supplies, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in a May 3 news briefing.
New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Rhode Island and Massachusetts are teaming up to develop a regional supply chain for personal protective equipment, other medical equipment and testing.
The states will aggregate orders, which Mr. Cuomo said should allow them to buy supplies at lower prices and stabilize the medical supply chain in the region.
"We're doing regional planning now on the reopening because every state is linked to every other state. If we do something in New York, it affects New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, etc," Mr. Cuomo said.
New York also will require that every hospital have a 90-day supply of personal protective equipment in the future to avoid the kind of shortages seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, the governor said.
Read the full transcript of the news briefing here.