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In April, at the height of the Corona crisis, the federal government discovered that very few masks were available. So he got 18 million of these in China through DDPS and distributed them to retailers and pharmacies at cost price. As “Kassensturz” reported on Tuesday, these masks are not ideal for fighting viruses.
“The CE mark gives the impression that this mask meets European requirements,” said Margit Widmann, professor of medical product quality management at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences. “In the fine print I discover a Chinese regulation against air pollution. And then I wonder if these masks are suitable against Covid-19. “
Lidl and Manor take action, Spar is considering
The CE mark means that the mask has been certified in Europe and meets the highest quality standards. Types I, II and IIR meet the requirement. If the consumer reads this on the packaging, they can safely buy the masks and use them against Corona. Bloss: In the case of VBS skins, that’s not true. They do not meet these standards and therefore must be marked “non-medical” or “not for medical use” on the packaging and must not be transported by healthcare personnel.
However, these masks can be bought in stores, for example, at Lidl, Manor and Spar. Meanwhile, Lidl has affixed the CE mark, Manor wants to do the same, Spar is still considering. The masks were also sold at the rose pharmacy. In the future, notices will be attached to the packaging so that the consumer is duly informed.
VBS admits bugs
Brigadier Markus Näf was responsible for the procurement of medical products on behalf of the VBS. He says of the “Kassensturz”: “This mask is declared a medical mask, but that is not correct. It was declared incorrectly in the context of the initial distribution, in which the skins are distributed through the major distributors. However, the mask meets the criteria for not posing a risk to the population. “
Currently, it is being checked how many of these masks have already been used. If stocks are still available, it is discussed whether they should be provided with a sticker informing them that they are not for medical use. (vof)
