
The US Is Refusing to Take the World’s Most Available Masks - toasterfun
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/kenbensinger/coronavirus-kn95-masks-us-wont-import-china
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blhack
Because China has been selling fakes:
[https://www.businessinsider.com/coroanvirus-holland-
recalls-...](https://www.businessinsider.com/coroanvirus-holland-recalls-over-
half-a-million-masks-imported-from-china-2020-3)

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dfee
> The journalists at BuzzFeed News are proud to bring you trustworthy and
> relevant reporting about the coronavirus.

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BitwiseFool
Just wait for people in the comments to mention how Buzzfeed News is
completely different from normal Buzzfeed and they're actually highly
respectable because of one reward they received.

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tzs
Which one award are you talking about? The 2016 National Magazine Award in the
category of Public Interest? Or the 2014 National Press Foundation award? Or
the 2016 National Press Foundation award? Or the 2015 Sidney Award? Or the
2017 British Journalism Award? Or the 2018 George Polk Award?

Or are you referring to them being finalists for both the 2017 and 2018
Pulitzer Prized in International Reporting? Or finalists for the 2016 and 2018
Online Journalism Awards? Or finalists for the 2018 Goldsmith Prize for
Investigative Reporting?

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dpbriggs
Are people so cynical as to believe the US Gov will arbitrarily deny necessary
medical supplies?

There is more variables at play than just '# of masks'. It is necessary to
ensure the masks actually work, as defects will cost the lives of frontline
workers.

My country, Canada, is doing the same thing:
[https://www.chroniclejournal.com/news/national/canada-
will-m...](https://www.chroniclejournal.com/news/national/canada-will-make-
sure-chinese-masks-meet-quality-standards-
trudeau/article_a6dc831c-ff8d-5548-a58a-347cc4167cf4.html)

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partiallypro
Given that there have been various reports of fake masks and test kits coming
out of Chinese factories, I kind of don't blame them for this one.

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unethical_ban
1) Are other countries also trusting these KN95 masks? Why are they so much
easier to get?

2) Is there any other viable reason they are not on the approved list? I don't
put a lot of stock in the goodwill of the US executive branch either, but it
seems some journalistic questions were skipped.

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Simulacra
This is very hyperbolic, perhaps sensationalist. China has been producing
fakes that other countries are turning away.

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themark
"mask is designed to filter out at least 95% of particles that are 0.3 microns
or larger in size"

Isnt the coronavirus much smaller than .3 microns?

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dougabug
The droplets from sneezing, coughing, or even breathing are much larger than
the coronavirus, for which they are a transport mechanism.

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alliao
KN95 spec allows a percentage of unfiltered air to be inhaled which kinda
defeats the purpose no?

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ISL
Every mask will allow some fraction of unfiltered air to be inhaled. The
question is: how much is permissible?

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madengr
Well I guess this sort of stuff happens when you outsource manufacturing for a
generation.

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ngcc_hk
Kill you once by spreading virus with its social media control. Kill you 2nd
round by selling you faked products. Is this kill you the third cut by doing a
PR war that not accepting this Trojan Horse is political.

How many cuts you need to kill the western world.

