CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield said there's a simple step Americans can take to help in the fight against the coronavirus: stop buying high-tech N95 respirator masks.
WASHINGTON — Testifying before Congress on Tuesday, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Robert Redfield said there is a simple step Americans can take to help in the fight against the coronavirus: stop buying high-tech N95 respirator masks — and leave them for health-care workers who really need them.
As the virus has spread, creeping steadily toward pandemic levels, the face mask has become a symbol of prophylaxis against an invisible, fast-moving foe. Story continuesThat is why Redfield and others have taken to discouraging Americans from buying the N95 respirators, lest they exacerbate an already troubling situation. Ordinary surgical masks are not considered very effective protection, although they have a use in preventing those who may be already infected from spreading the virus.
The government currently has only 30 million respirators, or one-tenth of the required amount. Its $2.5 billion congressional funding request for the coronavirus response intends to address that shortfall, among other precautionary and preventative measures.
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