Journal of Critical Infrastructure Policy Volume 1, Number 2, Fall/Winter 2020 | Page 169

COVID-19 Case Study : Public-Private Partnerships in Maryland
Human Services , Health , the Maryland Governor ’ s Office of Community Initiatives , and as well as other agencies representing various sectors .
The Department of Commerce and MBEOC partners were critical in assisting private sector entities in obtaining government resources , procurement , and donations during the emergency response to COVID-19 . Commerce also provided MBEOC with four members of their staff at the Business Development Branch and the Strategic Industries & Entrepreneurship Team . These staff created a process to oversee and facilitate crisis management fielding , donation coordination tracking , emergency vendor database tracking , and manufacturing innovations guidance for manufacturers transitioning to producing PPE products . The successes of the MBEOC were due in large part to support across the entirety of government throughout the response .
Private Sector Partners
MBEOC leveraged private sector partners including representatives of essential privately-run critical infrastructures and businesses as well as with industry ( Table 2 ). Collaborative problem solving associated with MBEOC activation has been extremely valuable throughout the pandemic . From coordinating the bulk donation of goods , providing guidance on government regulations , partnering with the Maryland Food Bank for feeding missions , and other operational activities , these joint problem-solving ventures would not have been possible without the partnership established by the PSIP as well as the MBEOC .
Table 1 . Private-Sector Partners
165