In keeping with one of our core values, Fire Service Advocacy, Emergency Reporting would like to share a solution that will help you with reimbursement for consumable supplies.
Excerpts below are from the FEMA Fact Sheet Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic: Eligible Emergency Protective Measures. We highly recommend reviewing the fact sheet in its entirety.
In accordance with section 502 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. 5121-5207 (the “Stafford Act”), eligible emergency protective measures taken to respond to the COVID-19 emergency at the direction or guidance of public health officials may be reimbursed under Category B of FEMA’s Public Assistance program….
State, territorial, tribal, and local government entities and certain private non-profit organizations are eligible to apply for Public Assistance. FEMA assistance will be provided at a 75 percent federal cost share. This assistance will require execution of a FEMA-State/Tribal/Territory Agreement, as appropriate, and execution of an applicable emergency plan. Local governments and other eligible PA applicants will apply through their respective state, tribal or territorial jurisdictions.
Eligible Assistance
Under the COVID-19 Emergency Declaration described above, FEMA may provide assistance for emergency protective measures including, but not limited to, the following, if not funded by the HHS/CDC or other federal agency…:
Emergency medical care:
Related medical facility services and supplies
Emergency Reporting’s Inventory module will help you track items that fit the FEMA definition of “Related medical supplies”.
Here’s a primer to get you started:
DATA IN
Step 1 – Create your Inventory Categories
Here we go…details for creating Inventory Categories can be found in this Knowledge Base Article (KBA).
Tips:
- Keep the title of the category simple (e.g. “EMS Consumables” for all patient care consumables).
- The system will automatically notify individual(s) via email whenever an inventory item gets to a reorder level or a critical level, so be sure to add at least one person per category to be notified.
Step 2 – Configure Your Packaging Types
Ok, next you’ll configure your Packaging Types. This KBA will guide you.
Tips:
- Think of how your consumable supplies come packaged from the factory. That’s going to be an example of a packaging type.
- Keep it generic…no need to name it “Box of Gloves,” for example. You’ll add a packaging type to an inventory item later.
- The key is to get the amount per container correctly entered.
Step 3 – Build Your Business List
Now, it’s time to build your business list. This KBA will walk you through it.
Tips:
- Always select “Vendor” from the Category dropdown, or else your business won’t appear in the Inventory Module dropdown for vendor.
- Ensure that anyone assigned to enter businesses has Full Access to the “Access to Dropdowns” permission. This permission is found in the granular permissions for the Administration module:
Step 4 –Building & Managing Your Inventory List
We’re almost done…the last thing to do is build your inventory lists. These KBAs will show you the way:
Tips:
- Each inventory item must be assigned to either a station, apparatus, or person.
- The reorder and critical amounts are based on individual items, not packaging types.
Outstanding job! Now you’re ready to manage your consumable supplies and hopefully get some reimbursement. Below are ways to extract your data.
DATA OUT
Within the Inventory module, there are multiple built-in reports to help with reordering items. There is also a purchase report in this section.
In addition to the aforementioned reports, there are these system reports to help keep track of consumable supplies:
That covers the key components of getting the Inventory Module configured and ready to use.
Thank you for all your doing for your communities during these difficult times.
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About the Author:
Tom Louis is ER’s Business Development Analyst. After 22 years of service, he retired from the Green Valley Fire District (AZ) in 2013 as a battalion chief. He has been part of the Emergency Reporting family since 2011, training customers around the world. Tom graduated summa cum laude from Arizona State University with a bachelor’s degree in Fire Service Management. He is an avid reader of both non-fiction books and technothriller novels, loves Mopar muscle cars, and has a soft spot for retired racing greyhounds.
