California Governor "Plans to Purchase 200 Million Masks Every Month"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The state of California in the United States has announced plans to spend tens of billions of dollars on personal protective equipment (PPE), including purchasing up to 200 million masks per month going forward. Following China, the U.S. is expected to become the new global PPE black hole.

According to foreign media such as the Associated Press, California Governor Gavin Newsom stated on the 8th (local time), "We plan to spend over $1 billion to purchase up to 200 million masks each month to increase our PPE stockpile," adding, "We expect to meet the demand not only in California but also in other Western states." Documents submitted by the California state government to the state legislature indicate that the authorities plan to purchase $1.4 billion worth of PPE.

Of the 200 million masks California plans to order, 150 million are N95 masks, and the remaining 50 million are surgical masks. The mask purchase costs will be covered in part by the $1 billion support package approved by the U.S. Congress last month and a $1.3 billion disaster response emergency fund within California. Previously, California distributed 41.4 million N95 masks to residents.

The reason the California state government is actively purchasing masks is due to the ongoing spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). According to COVID-19 statistics from Johns Hopkins University, California has recorded more than 18,800 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 490 deaths as of this date.