Why N95 Masks Are Still In Short Supply In The U.S.

A year ago, hundreds of desperate consumers were emailing Mike Bowen's Texas medical supply factory every day, looking to buy N95 medical respirator masks that can filter viruses: "Scared Americans and moms and old people and people saying, 'Help me,' " Bowen recalls.

Today, most consumers still aren't able to buy N95 masks, because the supply available to retailers remains very limited. Even hospital workers are still being asked to ration and reuse their supplies of N95s, and the website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says, "N-95 respirators should not be used [by the general public] because they should be conserved for healthcare personnel."

Meanwhile, consumer demand for N95s and medical-grade, surgical-style masks keeps growing as the Biden administration emphasizes the use of masks by the public to slow the spread of the coronavirus — especially as new variants of it spread rapidly around the world.

From the start of the coronavirus pandemic, Bowen's company, Prestige Ameritech, and most other makers and distributors have prioritized supplying health care workers, who say they still don't have enough masks and other personal protective equipment.