WASHINGTON, D.C. April 1, 2020 — Couriers must be declared essential service providers in every state for the sake of public safety. Because of that need, today the Customized Logistics and Delivery Association (CLDA) charged each of its members and all members of the industry with contacting their governors to declare their companies Essential Service providers. “Members of this industry must contact their governors immediately to get this declaration before they issue Emergency Orders to shelter in place,” urged CLDA President Steve Howard. “If they wait, it might be too late and the services we provide to keep the supply chain moving could take days or even weeks to start up again. Once governors issue Emergency Orders to shelter in place, they will be shut down and the supply chain will grind to a halt.”
Because of the pleas of couriers in Florida and Washington, state governors of those states have already declared their work as essential services. CLDA members in Minnesota, New York and California have already contacted their governors and expect to get that designation within the next few days.
“We are asking governors in all 50 states to use their offices to declare the courier industry as an “Essential Service” under your peacetime emergency authority,” said Howard. “Courier services throughout this country are absolutely critical to both our current pandemic crisis and our supply chain.”
He pointed out that couriers are already actively engaged in delivering supplies to cope with the current crisis including delivering:
COVID-19 test samples from clinics and testing facilities to labs for diagnosis
Tissue and blood samples to diagnose and treat COVID-19 related illnesses
Pharmaceuticals to residences, assisted living facilities, hospitals and pharmacies.
Diagnostic testing for all other non-pandemic related illnesses
Blood and blood products from blood banks to hospitals and clinics.
In addition, Howard pointed out that courier companies are the essential last-mile delivery providers that support people working at home. “Our members are helping these workers by delivering to homes laptops, printers, offices supplies and needed documents that can’t be emailed,” he said.
The courier industry serves a unique need that national delivery services can’t provide – deliveries in hours, not overnight. “Our customers need our services 24/7/365 for deliveries on an immediate, as-needed basis. Due to the urgent nature of these deliveries they cannot be made by national carriers such as USPS, UPS and FedEx that deliver in days, not hours,” said Howard.
CLDA is offering help to couriers in all 50 states – whether or not they are members of the association – with guidance on how to approach the governors of their states. Any courier may contact CLDA’s Government Affairs Director, Michael Taylor at Michael@clda.org or (703) 623-8995.
“Please contact your governors now,” urged Howard. “The longer you wait, the more difficult it will be and the more likely that the supply chain isbrought to a halt leaving medical providers and consumers in desperate need of critical supplies.”
About the Customized Logistics and Delivery Association
The Customized Logistics and Delivery Association (CLDA) is a non-profit professional association that is the voice of the time-critical logistics, delivery and express air cargo logistics industries. The association serves the needs of its 3,500 members who are logistics professionals, carriers, shippers, drivers, air cargo logistics providers, 3 PLs and vendors servicing today’s supply chain companies. Since 1987, CLDA has provided business opportunities, advocacy and education.
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