The shortage of proper masks, gowns and eye gear is imperiling the ability of medical workers to fight the coronavirus — and putting their own lives at risk.

The Open Cities Community Health Center in St. Paul, Minn., is considering shutting down because it doesn’t have enough face masks.

Doctors at Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis are performing invasive procedures on coronavirus patients with loose-fitting surgical masks rather than the tight respirator masks recommended by health agencies. At a Los Angeles emergency room, doctors were given a box of expired masks, and when they tried to put them on, the elastic bands snapped.

With coronavirus cases soaring, doctors, nurses and other front-line medical workers across the United States are confronting a dire shortage of masks, surgical gowns, and eye gear to protect them from the virus.

In interviews, doctors said they were increasingly anxious, fearing they could expose not only themselves to the virus but their families and others.

“There’s absolutely no way to protect me,” said Dr. Faezah A. Bux, an anesthesiologist in central Kentucky who in recent days had to intubate several elderly patients in respiratory distress without the respirator masks and protective eye gear recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Not only can I not protect myself, but I also can’t protect my patients.”

At a White House briefing on Thursday, President Trump said millions of masks were in production and that the federal government had made efforts to address the shortages, though he did not provide details. But he said it was largely up to governors to deal with the problem.

“The federal government’s not supposed to be out there buying vast amounts of items and then shipping,” Mr. Trump said. “You know, we’re not a shipping clerk.” read more

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