Does France have enough masks to ensure deconfinement? This Monday morning, Secretary of State Agnès Pannier-Runacher, in charge of this file, tried to reassure during a press conference.
Read also: Agnès Pannier-Runacher: "The strongest companies must give themselves the means to take back"
The variety of masks that will be put on the market complicates the calculation. The government therefore prefers to count in terms of single use equivalents. A surgical mask can only be used once, while a cloth mask can be washed and reused many times. By counting in this way, France will be able to produce the equivalent of " 150 million uses this week ", and 271 million next week.
The secretary of state underlines draws the government's preference for reusable masks, which prove to be more economical. She takes the example of a washable mask twenty times: 20 million units of this type will be produced this week, 26 million next week and 31 million the following week. Companies able to do so were invited to start producing masks: to do this, " any producer able to demonstrate compliance with the interministerial note of March 29, after a test by an independent laboratory, can then market, specifies Agnès Pannier-Runacher. Afnor has published a detailed specification which can be used to guide manufacturers and craftspeople . ” A VAT rate of 5.5% will apply for these products, like the bottles of hydroalcoholic gel.
Where will we find the masks? A decree published this Sunday authorizes pharmacies to market them again. “ We asked the distributors to make the masks available in the different circuits. I want an organized distribution ”, adds Agnès Pannier-Runacher, without giving details of these distribution channels, on the eve of the speech by Edouard Philippe to present the deconfinement plan. The Secretary of State therefore did not rule on a possible cap on the price of masks.
Read also: Agnès Pannier-Runacher: "The objective is to support companies that operated well before containment"
According to a note from Bercy consulted by the JDD, the need for fabric protections cannot be covered from May 11. The government intends to rely on a continuation of telework for part of the employees, or even work stoppages for childcare. " Many French people will not take the road to work in public transport, " argued Agnès Pannier-Runacher, while this medical device will be mandatory there at the start of deconfinement, according to the latest indications from the Élysée Palace.