N95 masks the new baby formula

PHARMACISTS are reporting stocks of N95 face masks, hand sanitiser and alcohol swabs are being bought up by customers intent on shipping them overseas, as fears over the threat of coronavirus grow.

In an email to Pharmacy Daily, one Victorian pharmacist said she had handled hundreds of queries related to the products, noting “only 5% claimed it was for domestic use”.

“I spent a significant amount of my pharmacy work week responding to queries regarding the purchase of face masks, hand sanitiser gel and alcohol swabs that were being purchased to send overseas,” she said.

The surge in demand for N95 masks has prompted some pharmacists to compare it to the bulk-buying of baby formula for resale in overseas markets, with Scottish pharmacists also reporting overseas tourists and student bulkbuying masks to sent to family in affected areas.

A spokesperson for the Pharmacy Guild of Australia noted many pharmacies have come under pressure from consumers to supply face masks in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

“We are also aware that because of the high demand for masks, many pharmacies are out of stock, and wholesalers also report that they have no stock on hand,” the spokesperson said.

“The Guild continues to receive many queries from members around availability of masks following requests from their patients and local community to purchase their own as a precaution.”

The Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Professor Brendan Murphy, has previously said their was “no need for the Australian public to wear masks”.

“The only people who should wear masks in relation to this virus are those who are unwell,” Murphy said.

The Guild spokesperson said where a pharmacy has access to masks, pharmacists should use their own judgement in response to requests from members of the public who want to buy them.

Consumers should be informed of the CMO’s advice that they do not need to be wearing masks at this time unless they fit the at-risk criteria around recent travel or contact with the virus.