The Department of Health and Human Services announced the second contract for ventilator production rated under the Defense Production Act (DPA), to Philips. Philips’s contract, at a total contract price of $646.7 million, is for a production schedule allowing for the delivery of 2,500 ventilators to the Strategic National Stockpile by the end of May 2020 and a total of 43,000 ventilators to be delivered by the end of December 2020. The rating of this contract under the DPA follows President Trump’s direction to HHS Secretary Alex Azar to invoke the Act with regard to Philips and five other companies on April 2. The five other firms will receive rated contracts in the coming week.

Secretary Azar issued the following statement:

“President Trump’s bold use of the Defense Production Act is activating America’s industrial base to produce the medical equipment we need to combat the coronavirus. The DPA is allowing the federal government to work with manufacturers, such as Philips, to accelerate production of ventilators and ensure that they go where they’re needed most. HHS will continue awarding contracts to companies for which it has invoked the DPA for ventilator production, while we explore every possible avenue to get life-saving supplies to the frontlines of this war on the virus.”