HDA recently sponsored and participated in the Milken Institute’s 2021 Future of Health Summit. This year’s event, held on June 22–23, brought together industry experts, public health leaders and elected officials for insightful policy discussions on a variety of issues that are shaping healthcare in our country.

HDA President and CEO Chip Davis recently spoke at the 2021 BLC Online about the unique role of the healthcare distribution industry in combating COVID-19, how distributors continue to rise to its challenges and what is still needed to turn the corner on the pandemic, among other association priorities.

Protecting the steady supply of critical, lifesaving medicines to hospitals, pharmacies, providers and patients is a complex process in normal times. During COVID-19, patient demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) and other products has escalated significantly, adding new and unique challenges for HDA distributor members who are working around the clock to meet the daily healthcare needs of all Americans.

For the past year, I have watched the men and women of the healthcare distribution industry go above and beyond on a daily basis to make sure medicines, vaccines, PPE and other medical supplies reached patients and providers across the country. Their energy, determination and commitment have ensured a resilient supply chain during the most challenging days of the COVID-19 pandemic and a distribution network that has continued to deliver value each and every day.

On March 11, The 19th, an independent, nonprofit newsroom reporting on gender, politics and policy, hosted a virtual summit about healthcare equity in the context of the nation’s ongoing fight to defeat COVID-19. The event featured important and unique perspectives from the women directing the Biden-Harris administration’s pandemic response as well as other public health, health policy and healthcare industry leaders.