The Power of the DPA

The Biden administration plans to use the Defense Production Act to ramp up manufacturing of safety measures.  This will increase supplies. Reduce dependence on foreign suppliers. COVID-19 vaccines, surgical gloves and at-home testing kits need to be available.

The Biden administration will use the DPA to contract for 60 million at-home tests. This news comes after the administration announced a $231.8 million deal for 100,000 test kits per month. The goal is 19 million tests per month.

The Defense Department will also deploy 1,100 active military personnel to support state vaccination sites. The service members, the majority of whom will be medical personnel, are expected to be stationed at five FEMA megasites, two of which are in Oakland and east Los Angeles. The NFL has offered their stadiums. President Biden and first lady Jill Biden thanked health care workers for their work ahead of the Super Bowl kickoff on Sunday.