TRSA President & CEO Joseph Ricci recently submitted comments on the importance of reusable personal protective equipment (PPE) to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) as part of the committee’s request for information on policies that the committee should consider during the reauthorization process for the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA). The act is due to be reauthorized before the end of this fiscal year.

House Energy and Commerce Committee Members Reps. Richard Hudson (R-NC) and Anna Eshoo (D-CA) recently released a Request for Information (RFI) in preparation of the upcoming Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA) reauthorization due by Sept. 30. After shortages in supply at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, TRSA has led the effort to make reusable isolation gowns and other textiles more prominent in hospital inventories under PAHPA and provided the committee with information supporting this position.

A recent case study on Ecotex Healthcare Linen Service noted that the operator saved Ontario taxpayers $70 million during the first 24 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. During a time of widespread shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE), Ecotex was able to supply hospitals in the Greater Toronto area with AAMI Level II rated reusable barrier isolation gowns.

For April’s Textile Services magazine we’ll offer readers insights on the supply-chain crisis precipitated by COVID-19 and how operators and suppliers have adjusted their planning in light of the pandemic that began three years ago. Below are highlights from the forthcoming article, titled “Supply-Chain Strategies: Lessons from the Pandemic.”

Ben Fox, Alsco Uniforms, Salt Lake City, recently advanced from director of sales and marketing to vice president of that department, following a January meeting of Alsco Uniform’s Board of Directors.

TRSA’s February issue of Textile Services will feature a cover article on safety issues and how attitudes have shifted following the recent COVID-19 pandemic.

The pandemic that took hold in March 2020 is now rapidly waning, but its lingering impacts continue to affect the linen, uniform and facility services industry, including company mergers and acquisitions (M&As), according to a forthcoming article by a leading M&A consult writing in Textile Services magazine.

TRSA recently released the results of its Business Pulse Survey for the fourth quarter of 2022. The survey was conducted in November/December and received more than 60 responses from TRSA members. The respondents operate across a range of market sectors, including industrial/workwear, food-and-beverage, acute and nonacute healthcare, hospitality/hotels, and mixed operations.

Linen and uniform services with New York State hospital customers have a fast-disappearing opportunity to help make reusable isolation gowns and other protective garments a higher priority in their personal protective equipment (PPE) inventories. The state Department of Health has issued a request to hospitals to recommend by Dec. 30 methodology to revise PPE stockpile rules.

Following rising COVID-19 cases in China, the organizers of Texcare Asia & China Laundry Expo (TXCA & CLE) have decided to defer the fair to 2023 in Shanghai. The trade show was previously scheduled to be held this Nov. 17–19 in Ningbo, according to a news release.