Quality issues with internationally sourced protective goods no surprise: federal minister

OTTAWA (NEWS 1130) — Quality problems with medical and protective equipment procured from other countries should not be a surprise given the global surge in demand for COVID-19 supplies, but the government is taking an aggressive approach to quickly bring more to Canada, according to the federal procurement minister.

This past week, Canadian authorities found one million protective face masks imported from China to be inadequate for health-care workers. The Public Health Agency of Canada said the masks didn’t meet its standards and they will not be distributed to provinces as planned.

Two planes — one chartered by the federal government and another by a province which hasn’t been named — returned to Canada from China without their intended cargo, although those goods have since arrived.

“Given the intense global demand for equipment and supplies, we are facing many challenges. Much of the world’s supply is manufactured in China, and moving materials out of that country is highly complex,” Anita Anand, minister of public services and procurement, said Friday.

“We have experienced challenges, as the prime minister discussed earlier this week,” she added. “I want to reassure Canadians that we continue to adjust and refine our logistical and diplomatic approaches on the ground, not just in response to supply-chain challenges, but in anticipation of these challenges.”

Anand said Canada’s aggressive approach to bringing in supplies includes building in contingencies, over-buying in some cases, and implementing rigorous product testing.

“Progress is being made.”

Canada has received six planeloads carrying supplies from China since last Friday, she added, while more than 10 carriers have brought back goods from there overall.

“They have helped to carry millions more N95 respirators and surgical masks into Canada that are now in the public health agency for testing,” she said of China.

Last weekend, Anand added, Canada also received an international shipment of a chemical needed for producing reagent, used in COVID-19 testing. A company in New Brunswick is now preparing to deliver reagent for up to 500,000 tests a week, she said.

While Anand acknowledged that Canada has had quality issues with some supplies, the Public Health Agency is inspecting all incoming equipment before it is distributed across Canada.

She also said the federal government has asked Canadian companies to ramp up efforts to make protective equipment, such as surgical masks, gowns, hand sanitizer, and ventilators.

In the meantime, Anand added, Canada still needs to bring in internationally sourced supplies, including many from China.

To date, more than 2,000 people have died from COVID-19 in Canada and more than 643,000 tests have been administered, with more than 6.5 positive for the virus.

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