States Discard Millions of PPE Due to Expiration and Surpluses

As the pandemic eases, states grapple with the costly dilemma of managing aging stockpiles of protective gear.

At least 15 states have discarded portions of their stockpiles of personal protective equipment (PPE) due to expiration dates and surpluses, with more than 18 million masks, 22 million gowns, and 500,000 gloves thrown away.
Ohio auctioned off 393,000 gowns for $2,451 and discarded another 7.2 million items, including expired masks and gloves, originally costing about $29 million in federal money.
States are grappling with the decision of how much to invest in maintaining warehouses and supply stockpiles as a deadline to allocate federal COVID-19 cash approaches next year.
Despite the waste, states emphasize that they distributed far more gear than they discarded and have gone to great lengths to donate the leftovers.
The Health Industry Distributors Association recommends that product distributors maintain a 60-to-90-day supply to guard against demand spikes, but suggests it’s probably unnecessary for everyone in the system to have such a large cushion.