March 5, 2020

Please take note of the following travel and purchasing information related to the coronavirus situation.

Implications for Travel on Behalf of Drexel:

• As of March 4, 2020, all University travel to China, South Korea, and Italy is restricted unless approved by the Provost, and student programs in these countries have been suspended. Information on restrictions and areas of concern can be found on the Office of Global Engagement's Emergency Updates webpage.
• It is mandatory to register all domestic and international travel arrangements being made on behalf of Drexel in our Global Research & Academic Network Database, GRAND, so the University is aware of your itinerary in the event of an emergency. This process will help ensure the safety and duty of care for our students, faculty and professional staff traveling on behalf of Drexel.
• If you have upcoming personal or professional travel arrangements already booked through our Business Travel portal, please contact World Travel Inc. directly at 855.809.8166 or drexeltravel@worldtravelinc.com, should you have any questions or concerns.
• Travel booked before approximately the end of February is NOT being honored by airlines for free cancelation or changes. For instance, anyone who booked a conference months ago that has now been canceled will likely incur cancellation or change fees, regardless of whether you booked through World Travel, as those fees are directly associated with the individual airline and/or hotel.
• Most travel insurance carriers are NOT allowing claims for any trip booked after January 22, 2020, which is when the coronavirus became a named event. Therefore, travel insurance is likely irrelevant for any travel currently being booked.
• For travel booked outside of the University’s Travel Portal that has somehow been affected (either by cancelation and/or restriction) by the coronavirus situation, the individual department’s budget administrator will coordinate the appropriate reimbursement.

Purchasing:

• Be advised that most of our janitorial, cleaning/sanitation, and personal protective equipment products (e.g. face masks) are limited or have been placed on allocation by our suppliers. Allocation means that we will be allowed to order only a percentage of what our prior order history dictates.
• Due to the high demand for certain products expected or perceived to be required for coronavirus preparation, there is rampant price gouging in the marketplace. Pay close attention to the pricing on any of these items that you attempt to order. Please do NOT order items at inflated pricing.
• Please contact Procurement Services if you have questions or need assistance purchasing any products affected by the coronavirus situation.

Procurement Services is committed to supporting the University’s travel and purchasing needs throughout this rapidly evolving situation.