Gov. Murphy orders hospitals to report data of ‘critically important’ PPE inventory (video)

Taken from News 12 New Jersey

March 29, 2020

Gov. Phil Murphy signed an executive order Saturday to help keep track of personal protective equipment (PPE) as coronavirus cases continue to grow.

The governor’s order is directing health care facilities to report data for PPE inventory, ventilators and bed capacity. He says this will identify which facilities need the most donations or supplies from the national stockpile.

“Personal protective equipment for our frontline health care workers and first responders is critically important to fighting COVID-19,” Murphy says. “We must work within our health care networks to ensure that we are properly disbursing the personal protective equipment we receive from the national stockpile and donations proactively.”

Hackensack Mayor John Labrosse works at Hackensack Meridian and says the challenges medical professionals are facing is “mentally stressful.”

“They’re on the battlefield right now,” Labrosse says. “They’ve gone from being your caretakers to really being soldiers in the field. Nurses all over the country were especially in urban areas like this are dealing with the situation–they really have their hands full. The bravery and courage they are showing up, working long shifts and worrying about whether they are going to be sick or not or worried about affecting family members or children.”

A hotline has been set up for employees of Hackensack Meridian facilities. They can call 866-379-0244 and use the company ID HMHEAP.

Watch the video clip of President Deb White & read more here.