February 8th – According to the Seattle Times and KOMO News website on the 7th, the Washington State Hospital Association revealed that tens of thousands of N95 masks purchased by many local hospitals and associations are fake, and the number is about 300,000.
According to the Washington State Hospital Association, according to 3M, an American N95 mask manufacturer, on the 5th, the N95 masks that are circulating in hospitals are likely to be forged.
Subsequently, the Washington State Hospital Association sent some samples to 3M’s fraud handling department for inspection.
On the 6th, the association was notified that most of the masks were not produced by 3M companies. This result affects many hospitals in the state, as well as the sales and use of tens of thousands of N95 masks.
Kathy Sauer, president and CEO of the Washington State Hospital Association, said they have issued notices to hospitals to release the production lot numbers of those masks that have been tested as fake masks, so that they can remove them from the stockpile.
Sauer said it is still unclear whether the fake masks are not effective or whether the masks are circulating to other hospitals across the United States.
The number of fake masks, about 300,000, has been distributed to major hospitals in Washington, but most of them are still stored and have not been used by front-line medical staff.
Sauer revealed: “These fake masks are well documented and have passed the physical examination and test smoothly.
N95 masks are a valuable resource for us. It can fully protect the health of medical staff.
Those who sell fake masks deserve a severe condemnation.” It is reported that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has now launched a special investigation into counterfeit masks.
