Suggestions to Save Money on Disposable Gloves

These are some suggestions to save money on Disposable Gloves because of the high-prices created by the Covid-19 virus crisis.

Thousands of companies and millions of workers have had to not only search for new sources of disposable gloves due to shortages but have had to spend limitless time to search for better prices. This was caused by the new unexpected demand for disposable gloves to help prevent and contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus droplets. This virus is also known as: Coronavirus Disease 2019.

First, a little background on disposable gloves and why the shortage and prices of these gloves have become problematic.

I should first explain that I developed a few types of gloves to help combat problems due to wearing gloves because of the glove problems created in the late 1980’s by the HIV AIDS virus issue. At that time, people including millions of healthcare workers had to wear gloves that they never had to wear before this blood-borne pathogen became a problem. That’s when problems associated with wearing gloves arose. It was because of this HIV Virus also known as: Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

The first glove I developed due to my medical device background was a high-performance polyurethane glove that was totally bio-compatible, hypoallergenic, and exceptionally thin (1.2 mil) for a glove at this time.

The next glove that I developed was a special protective nylon glove liner which created a barrier to latex (proteins), rubber and plastic gloves. The glove liners, still popular to this day, serve to help many glove users who have problems with wearing gloves for long periods. You can view them at this link for those who need some relief when using disposable gloves. I will cover the liners in a new post.

Why Disposable Glove prices have dramatically increased.

The answer is simple. Unmet demand from the glove factories in Asia due to the factory shut downs caused by the virus coupled with the lack of raw materials for the same reason. This has led to prices increases over 1,000 percent.

Disposable Glove Options to consider

Nitrile vs. Latex:

Nitrile gloves have become the most common disposable gloves principally used in healthcare settings due to the problems with latex allergens. Nitrile gloves are also more effective against common chemicals unlike latex and they are much stronger than latex rubber gloves. However, nitrile gloves have been more unpredictable in regards to availability and pricing recently due to raw material issues.

Vinyl (PVC) Gloves

Vinyl Gloves are very popular but not used in healthcare settings due to the stringent FDA requirements. However, they are generally considered safe for most all applications since they are form fitting like Nitrile and Latex gloves.

PE (Polyethylene) Gloves

PE Gloves which are commonly used in food service are also known as cafeteria gloves. They are not form fitting like Nitrile or Latex Gloves but they are very thin and some versions even come with an embossed surface for better gripping.

Costs:

To give everyone a general idea about costs, see these examples by Case (Best) pricing:

Nitrile: ~ $0.51/Pair

Latex: ~$0.31/Pair

Vinyl: ~ $0.21/Pair

PE Gloves: Less than $0.01/Pair

Conclusion:

Most users rarely think about looking for alternate choices in a Disposable Glove and I hope this brief gives you some help and insight on some options. Therefore, depending on your application and use, you can easily switch to an alternate model while keeping safety in mind and reduce your costs while accessing more purchasing options.

Link: Disposable Gloves

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Joe McGarry

The Glove Guru

3 thoughts on “Suggestions to Save Money on Disposable Gloves

Interesting and educational article regarding each type of glove.This should be made available and presented to all healthcare organizations.

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