The N95 Mask Shortage is a Myth: Here’s Why The N95 Mask Shortage is a Myth: Here’s Why April 14, 2021 N95s, highly-protective masks that filter out at least 95 percent of airborne viral particles, are some of the most coveted products in the world. One year into the global COVID-19 pandemic, their allocation has been bungled in nearly every way possible. As the months have gone by, the number of available N95s has soared, and yet the US government has neither publicized the new mask companies nor directed the increasing supplies to where they are most needed. A lack of knowledge and trust in these companies has led hospitals to severely ration their workers’ N95s rather than purchase additional supplies. The private market is no better: Facebook, Amazon, and Google are largely blocking domestic N95 manufacturers from advertising and selling their products. At the same time, most consumers feel obliged to use less-protective cloth or surgical masks due to continuing CDC guidance to reserve N95s for hospitals that will not even accept them. The CDC defends this policy by pointing to the relative efficacy of cloth masks and citing “reasons supported by science, comfort, costs, and practicality,” though these reasons seem increasingly outdated. So, the pandemic continues, millions of Americans live in fear of getting sick, and all the while tens of millions of life-saving products are sitting unused in storage facilities. The N95 shortage is an illusion, and as the virus and its variants continue to spread, more must be done to disseminate the essential products throughout the population.