§4875 Prohibition on Acquisition of Personal Protective Equipment and Certain Other Items From Non-allied Foreign Nations

Summary

The Secretary of Defense must not buy certain health and cleaning supplies from North Korea, China, Russia, or Iran. The ban applies to main contracts and to all subcontracts. The rule does not apply if the Secretary decides that needed supplies of the right kind, amount, and quality cannot be bought from other countries in time and at a reasonable price, if the items will be used outside the United States, or if the purchase is $150,000 or less. A purchase over $150,000 cannot be broken into smaller buys to get under that limit. Covered items are protective gear used to stop disease spread (for example, nitrile or vinyl gloves, surgical masks, respirators and their filters, powered air-purifying respirators, face shields, protective eyewear, gowns, and head and foot coverings) and their materials and parts, but not added sensors or electronics. It also covers sanitizing and disinfecting wipes, testing swabs, gauze, and bandages.