Be Wary of Face Masks Sold Online

Face masks are hard to come by during these times and you could be pushed to look for an online seller that can ship face masks straight to your doorstep. While it’s convenient to add to cart, you should still check if the face masks you’re getting are effective against the virus. 

Department of Health (DOH) Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire warned Filipinos against face masks being sold online, as they can be of substandard quality.

Face masks should adhere to the standards of the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Trade and Industry, Vergeire told Dobol B sa News TV.

“We are implementing standards for locally produced face masks or those that are sold,” she said.

Should you decide to purchase face masks online, you must make sure it meets the standard. The DOH earlier said that the suggested retail price face maskst is P28 per piece.

“In case there are available masks online, make sure they are registered,” she added.

Vergeire underscored that workers in the health care setting should have quality face masks because substandard ones may put their life in danger.

“We are emphasizing this especially to those who are working in the health care setting because when you buy substandard PPEs and face masks, these could put your life in danger,” she added.

As healthcare workers need surgical masks and N95 masks daily and a supply is reserved for their use, Vergeire said they allow using face masks made out of cloth for civilians who need to go outside of their homes.

If you’re using a cloth face mask, you still have to properly cover your nose and mouth.

“What we noticed was when people wear masks, their noses are exposed or the mask only covered their mouths. We remind everyone to wear masks properly,” she added.

Frequent hand washing and observance of social distancing could also help prevent the spread of the respiratory disease.

This story originally appeared on reportr.world. Edits have been made by the Esquire Philippines editors.

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