The Department of Defense announced a $6.2 million contract with Medline Industries of Illinois to increase the domestic production of surgical masks.
The contract will allow Medline to increase production capacity at their plant in Lithia Springs, Ga., to 36 million surgical masks per month by May 2021, officials said.
The effort was funded by the HHS Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES) to support domestic internal base expansion for critical medical resources.
The contract comes as an experimental COVID-19 vaccine from the Cambridge, Mass.-based biotech firm Moderna, Inc. It appears to be almost 95 percent effective while a vaccine announced last week from competitor Pfizer, Inc., is thought to be at least 90 percent effective.
In an interview with the Associated Press, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S. government’s top infectious disease expert called the results “truly striking” and “the light at the end of the tunnel.”
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
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