WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today wrote to President Trump urging him utilize the full the power of the Defense Production Act (DPA) by ordering domestic manufacturers to prioritize U.S. orders to increase production of personal protective equipment (PPE) and requiring supply chain management companies to accept and prioritize U.S. orders to make sure the equipment is swiftly distributed to our communities. As Illinois prepares for an expected surge in COVID-19 cases, first responders in Illinois, such as emergency medical personnel, firefighters and law enforcement officers, are facing a PPE shortage that could harm their ability to work on the frontlines and safeguard our communities.
In part, Duckworth wrote, “I am reiterating my request that you immediately invoke the Defense Production Act (DPA) to order domestic manufacturers to prioritize U.S. orders to increase production of equipment. To ensure this critical equipment is delivered to those on the frontlines, the DPA must also be used to require supply chain management companies to accept and prioritize U.S. orders, so the protective equipment is swiftly distributed to our communities, including an adequate set aside for first responders. I urge you to use all available Federal resources, including continuing to leverage the DPA, to increase the supply of PPE and enhance the distribution of critical supplies that protects our brave first responders as they serve to keep the rest of us safe.”
Senator Duckworth penned an op-ed earlier this month calling on Trump to more fully use the Defense Production Act arguing that Donald Trump will never be the strong “wartime president” he claims to be so long as he keeps refusing to take obvious measures that could be done with the stroke of a pen, including actually ordering ventilators to be produced under the Defense Production Act. Duckworth also wrote to Vice President Pence requesting that Trump direct the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to exercise its authority under the Defense Production Act (DPA) to improve the distribution of medical supplies to hospitals, frontline providers and first responders across the country during the COVID-19 pandemic.
