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Trump Administration Changes National Stockpile Definition

Associated Press

   WASHINGTON - The Trump administration abruptly changed its description
   of the Strategic National Stockpile, the federal government's
   repository of life-saving medicines and supplies, to conform with
   President Donald Trump's insistence that it is only a short-term backup
   for states, not a commitment to ensure supplies get quickly to those
   who need them most during an emergency.

   The change, reflected on government websites Friday, came a day after
   Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and White House senior adviser who
   has taken a larger role in the coronavirus response, offered a new
   argument about the stockpile.

   After saying that states should use their own stockpiles first, Kushner
   said, "And the notion of the federal stockpile was it's supposed to be
   our stockpile. It's not supposed to be states' stockpiles that they
   then use."

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