Press Release

Vizient Joins Coalition to Combat the Online Sale of Counterfeit and Stolen Medical Supplies  

Vizient Joins Buy Safe America Coalition in Support of Efforts to Increase Transparency and Accountability on E-Commerce Platforms 

Washington, DC – Today, the Buy Safe America Coalition, a diverse group of retailers, consumer groups, wholesaler-distributors, manufacturers and law enforcement officials that support efforts to combat organized retail crime and protect consumers and communities from the sale of counterfeit and stolen goods, announced Vizient, Inc., the leading health care performance improvement company in the country, as its newest member. 

“Many bad actors have exploited the COVID pandemic for their own financial gain. Legislative action is necessary to curb the flow of these counterfeit and potentially hazardous health care products,” said Shoshana Krilow, Senior Vice President Public Policy and Government Relations for Vizient. “Vizient is proud to join the Buy Safe America Coalition and to also support the INFORM Consumers Act. It is a logical, but measured, approach to address an escalating problem.”

Efficacy of health care products is essential for Vizient members, which include academic medical centers, pediatric facilities, community hospitals, integrated health care delivery networks, and non-acute health care providers. 

To help Vizient member hospitals avoid poor-quality gray- and black-market products, their teams have reviewed nearly 5,300 unique requests since the start of the pandemic to confirm that products being offered were properly registered with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), or another appropriate governing entity. Of the requests reviewed, less than 25% were able to be confirmed by Vizient as having appropriate agency registrations. 

“The pandemic has underscored the importance of legitimate products that will protect our health care professionals and the patients they serve,” said Buy Safe America Coalition spokesperson Michael Hanson. “Online marketplaces have a responsibility to collect and verify basic third-party seller information in order to ensure businesses and consumers have access to safe and reliable products.”  

The coalition is urging Congress to pass the INFORM Consumers Act, which was introduced by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Christopher Coons (D-DE), and Thom Tillis (R-NC). Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Raphael Warnock (D-GA) recently signed on as co-sponsors of the legislation. This legislation would modernize consumer protection laws by requiring online marketplaces to collect and verify basic seller information and requiring high-volume sellers to provide that information to consumers.

Visit BuySafeAmerica.org for more information about the growing problem of stolen and counterfeit goods, and solutions to better protect consumers and businesses. 

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The Buy Safe America Coalition represents a diverse group of responsible retailers, consumer groups, manufacturers, intellectual property advocates and law enforcement officials who support efforts at all levels of government to protect consumers and communities from the sale of counterfeit and stolen goods.