U.S.-based company 3M said Friday that it has been asked by the Trump administration not to supply N95 respirators to Canada amid the coronavirus pandemic.
U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered Minnesota-based company to produce and sell as many medical-grade masks as the Federal Emergency Management Agency says it needs. He invoked the Defence Production Act in order to speed up the distribution of masks.
“The Administration also requested that 3M cease exporting respirators that we currently manufacture in the United States to the Canadian and Latin American markets,” a statement from the company read.
The company said the move raised “humanitarian” concerns for them.
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“There are, however, significant humanitarian implications of ceasing respirator supplies to healthcare workers in Canada and Latin America, where we are a critical supplier of respirators,” the statement added.
The statement also warned that limiting supply to other countries could lead to them “retaliating” with similar measures.
“If that were to occur, the net number of respirators being made available to the United States would actually decrease. That is the opposite of what we and the Administration, on behalf of the American people, both seek,” the company said.
(Global News)
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