Target the supply chain to boost health system resilience

McKinsey July 11, 2023
By Eric Bishop, Brianne Bowen, Sabriya Karim, Margarita Protopappa-Sieke, and William Weinstei

How health systems could enhance their ability to withstand supply shocks and deliver quality care in ordinary times and when crises strike.

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed vulnerabilities in US health system supply chains. Persistent and elevated supply shortages (compared with before the pandemic), coupled with economic uncertainty and growing inflation, have highlighted that this may be an opportune time for health systems to improve their supply chain resilience.

Although health systems are accustomed to dealing with supply shortages, many were ill-equipped to respond to the magnitude of supply shocks when the pandemic struck. For example, almost overnight, personal protective equipment (PPE)—including N95 masks, latex gloves, face shields, eye masks, and gowns—was depleted. To quickly restock essential PPE, many health systems...

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