COVID-19: Kuwait bans import of masks with breathing valve
Not fit for use in health utilities, says Infection Control Directorate
Cairo: Kuwait’s Health Ministry has banned importing valve-fitted face masks for medical facilities, saying they do not comply with medical standards, Al Qabas newspaper has reported.
The ban comes in response to a recommendation from the Infection Control Directorate (ICD) that has advised against the use of masks fitted with a valve or a one-direction filter for protection from the new coronavirus.
Such masks allow exhalation without the released air being filtered, ICD said, according to the report. While those masks may protect their wearers from the highly infectious virus, they do not prevent transmission of the virus to others.
“These masks are not fit for use in health utilities or indoor places,” ICD was quoted as saying.
They can merely be worn while practising some industrial activities such as marble cutting.
Kuwait so far has recorded a total of 90,387 virus infections and 546 deaths from COVID-19.