The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a final rule Dec. 16 to ban powdered gloves and absorbable powder for lubricating gloves due to substantial risks to health care providers and patients, including allergic reactions and airway inflammation. That same day, the supply chain team began discussions with our internal quality assurance specialists and the USAID Global Health Supply Chain Program-Quality Assurance (GHSC-QA) project on the appropriate course of action for powdered gloves included as a single commodity in the GHSC-PSM product catalog.
Gloves included in kits for voluntary medical male circumcision or implantable birth control are unpowdered and not affected by the ban. Staff at GHSC-PSM and GHSC-QA remain in close contact to ensure compliance with the new FDA ruling.
