Nursing Scrubs and Medical Scrubs Made in the USA

Nurses scrubs, medical scrubs hospital uniforms that are made in the USA are not easy to find.  Nurses uniforms aside, any clothing item made in the USA is a rarity.  In fact, ninety-seven percent of all clothing sold in the United States is no longer made in the U.S.  However, on some tags, the words "Made in the USA" might even mean the clothes were made in Guam, Puerto Rico and the Marinas Islands, which are U.S. territories and possessions that don't necessarily have to pay workers the U.S. minimum wage but can still use the 'Made in the USA' phrase. 

U.S. content must be disclosed on labels in clothing, furs and cars.  But do people care more about the origin of the item or the cost associated with that item?  Is the manufacturing tag on the hospital uniforms more important than the price tag?  And, why do products that are American-made cost more?  If the company does not have to pay importing fees, one would think that the product would cost less.  The fact of the matter is that it is a labor-intensive industry, so wherever a company can find the cheapest labor is probably where the production is going to go.  Companies that import their products hurts the American textile worker.  However, being able to purchase cheaper goods also helps the American consumer - they can wear a Made in China set of medical scrubs in the colors red, white and blue and can still hang onto their green.  Seventy-seven percent of Americans said that price is the most important factor when buying clothes, which includes medical uniforms.

Shopping for nurses scrubs and medical scrubs online, it is easy to find several retailers who actually advertise 'imported cotton' or 'imported poly/cotton.'  However, it is difficult to find 'Made in the USA.'  One scrubs online retail shop, blue sky scrubs, advertises that all of their products are handmade in the USA - and their prices make their claim believable.  Clearly, the companies that sell medical scrubs online for $4.99 per item are importing their products.  They are likely purchasing their fabric overseas as well.  The CEO of blue sky scrubs admits to previously ordering their products from the Dominican Republic.  However, since they had started manufacturing their products in the USA, after ordering just one large order of nurses scrubs and surgical scrub hats from the Dominican Republic, blue sky scrubs quickly switched back to their Houston, TX scrubs manufacturer.  Apparently, the difference in quality was astonishing.  The handful of people who sew the Houston-made scrubs do not use machines.  Every item is hand-cut, hand-measured, and hand-sewn.  Of course, there are drawbacks to sporting the USA label.  First, the prices have to be higher to account for the cost of labor in the United States, as well as the cost of the fabric and the cost to keep the utilities on and pay the rent for the building where the scrubs are made.  The cost of living and employing is higher, therefore the cost of the nursing scrubs reflect that.  One of the other drawbacks to having the USA made medical uniforms is that since each item is hand-cut and hand-sewn, there are bound to be variations between sizes.  For example, not all of their small scrub tops are exactly the same "small."  There can be up to 1/2 inch variation in each item, which some medical professional who wear scrubs do not like, especially since the price is higher than other scrubs such as Cherokee or Dickies scrubs.  Also, the selection of these hand-sewn scrubs is limited.  Urbane scrubs have many colors and styles.  Sewing scrubs and scrub hats by hand is a tedious process, so although the American scrubs company may want to expand their line, the likelihood of that being in the near future is slim.  Additionally, keeping the popular scrubs in stock is difficult because they take longer to make than those scrubs that are mass-made by a machine.  Even so, the loyal customers who have purchased the scrubs that are made by an American hand rarely want to go back to the other options, regardless of cost, selection, and availability.  Therefore,even though there are Cons, these American-made scrubs will continue their manufacturing in the US.