The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport has had 47.2 million mouth masks imported for healthcare in recent weeks, of which about 11 percent have been definitively rejected. The AD has requested these figures from the National Consortium Aids (LCH), the organization that the government set up to centrally purchase and distribute protective equipment in healthcare.
Most of the mouth masks purchased came from China. More than five million of them were definitively rejected after a test. Such a check is carried out by a team of the RIVM. In most cases, there were defects in the filter that is supposed to trap particles.
Another 3.9 million mouth masks have been rejected for the time being. It is hoped that these can still be used, for example outside the healthcare system.
Cost
If a purchased batch of mouth masks proves to be defective, an attempt is made to recover the costs from the supplier. The ministry has not told the AD whether this has been successful in all cases.
The LCH was established in March to regulate the distribution of protective equipment. When a large batch of Chinese caps subsequently turned out to be inferior after delivery to hospitals, it was decided to have all mouth masks checked by RIVM.
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