Washington state hospitals learn their supply of N95 masks contain fakes

10.02.2021

Hospitals in Washington state discovered their supply of N95 masks contained counterfeits after 3M, a company that manufactures the masks, said on Saturday at least some of the vital stockpile for Covid-19 frontline workers were fakes.

The Washington State Hospital Association (WSHA) said 3M notified them about possible knock-off masks circulating in the national supply of personal protective equipment. The association then asked hospitals on Friday to pull the masks from their inventory.

WSHA sent samples to 3M’s fraud department where the company confirmed some of the masks were counterfeit, according to a statement from the hospital association.

While the group has yet to confirm the number of knock-offs, they purchased 300,000 masks from a believed third party supplier of personal protective equipment, which added up to about $1.4 million. Of the hundreds of thousands of masks purchased, 60,000 were not distributed.

Sauer said all of the masks had “appropriate paperwork” and passed “physical inspection” and “testing.”

Fuente: kunwtv.com