Webinar urges providers to recognize potential red flags

Alexandria, VA, February 19, 2021 - The Health Industry Distributors Association (HIDA) convened a group of healthcare providers, medical supply distributors and manufacturers on Tuesday to discuss the best ways to avoid PPE scams and secure safe and approved PPE supplies. The webinar was part of the industry’s effort to educate all parts of the medical products supply chain about the importance of relying on established distributors for access to safe and reliable medical supplies.

“With the imbalance of supply and demand created by the pandemic, we have unfortunately seen an increase in counterfeiting, price gouging and fraud,” said Cassie Jacobson, Application Engineering Manager, Personal Safety Division of 3M Health Care, who oversees 3M’s anti-fraud programs and served as a presenter.

To help avoid fraudulent purchases, HIDA produced an infographic urging providers to recognize potential red flags. These include sources that are offering “too good to be true” prices, demanding advance payments or promising large, unrealistic volumes. HIDA is utilizing infographics, FAQ documents, presentations, and other tools to help protect the supply chain from the dangerous risks posed by fraud and counterfeit materials.

A video of the webinar is available on HIDA’s website.

About HIDA
The Health Industry Distributors Association (HIDA) represents the country’s medical product distributors – the nation’s essential link between manufacturers and patient caregivers. HIDA members offer critical services increasing the efficiency of U.S. healthcare providers, including hospitals, nursing homes, laboratories, home care, and physician practices. For more information, visit HIDA.org.

Press contact: Sharon Cohen, cohen@hida.org.