Armor on the frontlines

For years, experts have warned that a major national respiratory-borne virus would require billions of respirators and hundreds of millions of surgical masks to protect doctors and nurses helping the rest of us get better. The gap between supply and crying need is in painfully sharp relief for hospitals across New York City struggling to keep up with the sharp increase in COVID-19 cases.

Which is why it was beyond irresponsible for President Trump to insinuate Sunday that medical workers were culprits, not victims, in the personal protective equipment shortage.

“Where are the masks going — are they going out the back door?” said the president, channeling his inner Alex Jones. “Somebody should probably look into that, because I just don’t see from a practical standpoint how that’s possible to go from that (10,000 masks used per week before) to that (300,000 masks used now), and we have that happening in numerous places.” Less lying, please, and more supplying. One positive federal step: The FDA Monday approved a process to decontaminate used N95 respirators by the thousands. Bring it on.

Trump should also immediately seek FDA approval for KN95 respirators, a CDCapproved type of face mask that’s in wider supply than other mask-respirators the FDA recently approved for importation.

And he should invoke the Defense Production Act to not only procure more protective equipment but to ensure it’s distributed to states most in need. Gov. Cuomo is linking public and private hospitals in a partnership to rationalize distribution of lifesaving materials.

We’re at war. Send equipment.