coronavirus pandemic

Federal Stockpile Is Thin Amid Coronavirus Surge, Internal Documents Show

Nursing homes and long-term care facilities say there is a major personal protective equipment shortage

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 19: President Donald Trump (L) and Vice President Mike Pence attend a teleconference with governors at the Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters on March 19, 2020 in Washington, DC. With Americans testing positive from coronavirus rising President Trump is asking Congress for $1 trillion aid package to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Evan Vucci-Pool/Getty Images

The federal government may not have the capacity to supply medical professionals with personal protective equipment amid the latest surge in coronavirus cases, according to internal administration documents obtained by NBC News.

For example, the Strategic National Stockpile and the Federal Emergency Management Agency have fewer than 900,000 gloves in reserve after shipping 82.7 million of them — or just 30 percent of the amount requested by state, local and tribal governments — since the COVID-19 crisis began, according to figures compiled Sunday by Health and Human Services Department officials for senior leaders of the interagency coronavirus task force effort.

In particular, nursing homes and long-term care facilities say there is a major personal protective equipment shortage.

Read the full story on NBCNews.com

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