Maryland Congressional Delegation pushes FEMA for urgent medical supplies needed to fight coronavirus

The full Maryland Congressional Delegation is pushing FEMA to help with emergency medical supplies as cases continue to climb in the Old Line State.

The time-sensitive request for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) comes as COVID-19 cases are on the rise in the state and overall MD-DC-VA region.

The latest bipartisan request comes among reports that Maryland has received only a third of the items requested previously from FEMA.

In a letter to the regional FEMA director, the delegation identified six priority requests to FEMA: ventilators, Personal Protective Equipment, testing supplies, swabs, pharmaceutical supplies for medical surge sites, and mobile medical labs. 

The delegation also urged approval of the Crisis Counseling Program under the Individual Assistance portion of the Major Disaster Declaration for Maryland.  

The Major Disaster Declaration was approved on March 27, but approval for the State of Maryland is still under review.