Mass. Joins 6 Other States To Jointly Find And Purchase COVID-19 Supplies

Massachusetts and six other states are banding together to form a regional consortium to jointly find and purchase personal protective equipment, COVID-19 tests, ventilators and other medical equipment, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Sunday.

"While the states will continue to partner with the federal government during this global and national public health crisis, they will also work together to identify the entire region's needs for these products, aggregate demand among the states, reduce costs and stabilize the supply chain," Cuomo's office wrote in a press release announcing the joint effort. "The states will also coordinate policies regarding the inventory of PPE each state's health care infrastructure should have to be prepared for a possible second wave of COVID-19."

Massachusetts is joining forces with New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Rhode Island in the effort.

Cuomo's office said the states, which are also working together to coordinate re-opening efforts, are also talking about ways they could "collectively explore emerging technologies on an ongoing basis to take advantage of the potential associated with alternative methods of production for existing products and innovation that would lead to more effective and/or less expensive alternatives."

Gov. Baker has repeatedly said the state needs to continue to ramp up its testing capacity and that the hunt for PPE will be a constant function of state government for the duration of the pandemic.