US allows China-made KN95 mask to fight 'Chinese virus'

By Vakkas Dogantekin

ANKARA (AA) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will allow imports of Chinese-made KN95 respirator masks, alternative to the widely used N95, into the U.S. amid pressing medical equipment needs across the country.

After authorizing a number of foreign-certified respirators over a week ago, but omitting KN95, a top official from the regulatory federal agency told BuzzNews on Thursday that the agency will not block imports of KN95 masks either.

The FDA's move comes at a time when the medical staff in the U.S. have been increasingly vocal about their concerns regarding the shortage of medical equipment and gear in their fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

KN95 masks are six times cheaper than the N95s, according to publicly available market sources.

Although the FDA has not approved the KN95 as of yet, another federal agency in the frontlines of combatting the disease, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), had previously included it on a list of "suitable alternatives" to the N95 mask.

“The FDA is not blocking KN95 mask importations,” said Anand Shah, the agency’s deputy commissioner for medical and scientific affairs in an interview.

He added that importers would be bringing the KN95 into the country at their own risk.

- Mask slips

Mask ordeal is unmasking a new phase in the years-long trade war between the U.S. and China as well as a blame game about the origins of the coronavirus.

Chinese officials have been claiming that U.S. soldiers have brought the disease to Wuhan, the first epicenter of novel coronavirus, while U.S. President Donald Trump and his aides have not shied away from calling it the 'Chinese virus', blaming China for the spread of the infection.

The war of words between the two rival nations might have a quiet time as both countries are medically and commercially dependent on each other to tackle the COVID-19 crisis.

The number of people in the U.S. who have died from the virus has surpassed the 6,000 mark, according to data released early Friday by Johns Hopkins University.

The university's running tally counted 6,053 deaths and 245,540 cases as the U.S. struggles to curb the outbreak.

On Sunday, President Donald Trump warned that the next two weeks will be “very painful" in the U.S. in terms of deaths, and urged Americans to brace for "hard days ahead."