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Sales and production of fraudulent PPE, especially N95 and KN95 masks, have increased since December 2019 as people took advantage of the pandemic to make money. Many agencies and departments are having problems getting PPE and must source from unknown sellers.
A new fact sheet from the Technical Research, Assistance Center, Information Exchange (TRACIE) provides a quick reference to help you protect your staff with safe, approved PPE and instructions on how to report sellers of counterfeit products. Respirators for Healthcare during COVID-19: Authorized Use and Avoiding Fraudulent Products recommends the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Certified Equipment List and the Food and Drug Administration's Emergency Use Authorization list. These lists provide information on what types of masks or respirators to use under various circumstances, use of imported products, and indicators of counterfeit products and vendors.
Review this guidance and keep it on-hand as a reference to help ensure the safety of people in your department.
Counterfeit respirators: make others aware
Share this card on your social media channels to increase awareness about counterfeit respirators.
This article appears in the
July 16, 2020 InfoGram.
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