The Saint Jude vascular plugs are implants that are used in pulmonary embolisms as a hemostatic treatment for bleeding or as a treatment for some types of cancer by deliberately blocking blood vessels to starve the tumor cells.

This purchase is exempt from the usual selection processes of the Procurement Code because the procurement expenditure is for medical supplies or medical services necessary for the delivery of care and treatment at medical, dental, or veterinary teaching facilities utilized by SIU or U of I (30 ILCS 500 / 1-13(b-5)) Saint Jude vascular plugs have to do with direct patient care. Without the Saint Jude vascular plugs, the University of Illinois Hospital would not be able to treat pulmonary embolism with a hemostatic treatment that in turn would drive patients elsewhere and result in a loss of revenue to the Hospital.