Thread by @Marianhouk

@jackiekcalmes "Over the last three weeks, taxpayers have paid to fly the companies’ supplies to the U.S. from Asia on government-chartered cargo flights, while the firms have been free to sell the material to hospitals, clinics and others at prices they choose"...

@jackiekcalmes "That has saved the companies more than $25 million in shipping costs, savings they are not required to pass on to the medical systems, state governments + others who buy their products. The supply companies’ profits topped $2 billion last year, financial statements show."

@jackiekcalmes Jared's project --> "The administration has refused to disclose crucial details of the operation, known as Project Air Bridge, including its financial arrangements with the companies involved [multibillion-dollar firms such as McKesson Corp., Cardinal Health Inc., FedEx and UPS]"

"Five of the six medical distributors involved in Project Air Bridge — including the biggest companies — also wouldn’t answer questions about their participation.
Only Medline Industries Inc., a private company based outside Chicago, agreed
to discuss Air Bridge...

"...A spokesman said the company’s agreement with the government includes
a stipulation that it charge 'reasonable' prices, but the spokesman would not detail what that meant or how it would be enforced"...

And "The Federal Emergency Management Agency [FEMA], which is running
Air Bridge, required The Times to file a Freedom of Information Act request to get copies of any contracts or other financial agreements with the participating companies, a process that can take weeks/months."

“That seems pretty unfair,” the executive said, noting the cost of air freight can add 10% or more to the price of medical supplies for firms that have to pay to ship from Asia themselves. The executive..asked not to be identified out of fear of antagonizing the White House...

And "Smaller competitors say the administration has effectively excluded them from the government-subsidized program."

"In addition to missing out on subsidies, suppliers not selected for Air Bridge also risk having supplies they import seized at ports of entry by the federal govt without explanation. Medical systems across the country have reported shipments being expropriated in recent weeks,..

"The White House has cast Project Air Bridge, which President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner..set up, as a bold public-private partnership in a time of crisis. The admin touts the initiative to rebut charges that it's been unprepared to deal with shortages of critical supplies"

According to FEMA, Project Air Bridge was set up in late March to speed transportation of medical supplies from manufacturers in China + elsewhere to communities in the U.S. facing the biggest coronavirus outbreaks...

"FEMA pays air freight companies, including FedEx, UPS and Radiant Logistics Inc., for the trans-Pacific flights, which come into Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and other distribution hubs."

The deal --> "The participating medical-supply distribution companies send half of the shipments to customers in coronavirus hot spots + can send the remaining half to their existing customers elsewhere in the country, according to FEMA + Medline."

And..."a FEMA spokeswoman said...the agency deliberately chose to work with the biggest suppliers at the direction of the White House."

[“We’re working across government + private sectors to get our heroic doctors, nurses, healthcare workers … medical supplies they need. We’re getting them tremendous amounts of supplies,” [Trump] said at a recent briefing after meeting with company executives...

...“We’re glad to be joined by leaders of America’s medical supply and shipping companies. They’re big people. I know their names very well, from watching business and studying business all my life”: Trump said...}

"The program has included more than 35 flights, which have cost about $750,000 per flight, acc to FEMA.
@VP Pence gave a slightly different count on Wednesday, saying
44 flights had taken place + roughly 50 more were scheduled"

Low end = 35 flights at $750,000 = $26,250,000

Medline spokesman Jesse Greenberg: Medline has been losing money during the pandemic b/c its contracts with medical systems require the company to provide masks + other medical supplies at pre-pandemic prices...

"...Those prices are lower than what it currently costs the company to get products from manufacturers, Greenberg said.
As a private company, Medline doesn’t have to disclose its financial data, though
it reported $11.7 billion in revenue last year...

"Medical distributors and medical systems that buy their products don’t typically disclose the prices they negotiate, making it difficult to assess what the Air Bridge participants are charging for supplies."

Jared's public-private initiatives -- no requirement to report deal details...

"Altogether, the six firms participating in Air Bridge have contracts with thousands
of hospitals, medical systems and other healthcare providers across the country. Distributing medical supplies has been a lucrative business for several of the companies."

The firms in Jared's/FEMA's Project Air Bridge
McKesson, the largest medical distributor in US
Cardinal Health
Henry Schein Inc.
Owens & Minor Inc
Medline
Concordance Healthcare Solutions LLC. [not publicly traded, doesn’t
have to report revenues/profits]
latimes.com/politics/story…