Laura Tennant: Canada sent masks and protective equipment to China—and now we’re running out

National Post

In the face of the recent pandemic, one of the most affected countries has been China, therefore, different nations have tried to support that country by sending masks and protective equipment, and Canada was no exception.

It should be noted that today, people are informed that their actions have led to a shortage of supplies for health workers. But what people don’t understand is that consumers did not create the health worker mask shortage, in fact, governments did.

If people could reason from the limited data to which they had access at the end of January that they should buy a mask, governments should have come to the same conclusion and taken steps to ensure a supply of personal protective equipment for workers Of the health.

Irrationality by governments

It is perfectly rational to buy protective gear for you and your family if it is legal and available. After all, if you don’t buy these items, someone else will.

If governments wanted to secure a supply for health workers, they could have bought them in bulk when they were still available or ordered that stores stop selling them to the public and make them available to the health care system. Instead, the Canadian government sent 16 tons of protective equipment, including masks, to China.

Likewise, it could be said that now, it is very late. Very few skins remain available. Before the pandemic, China produced about half of the world’s medical masks. But under the current circumstances, the Chinese keep them in their own country. This is contributing to a global shortage and highlighting our dependence on other countries.

This being the case, it is understood that there simply are not enough masks in North America to overcome this pandemic. What we had to do was increase the local production of masks months ago. Now governments are catching up and blaming citizens for their own mistakes.

People who bought masks are now told to donate them to hospitals, where they can be used by healthcare workers who need them most. But it is worth noting that it is not exactly easy for hospitals to ensure that the masks have not been used, infected or contaminated after being in the possession of a civilian.

Source: Laura Tennant | National Post

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