US Removes Tariffs on Face Masks and Other Medical Supplies From China

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has granted tariff exclusions for face masks and other medical supplies imported from China.

Applications from 27 companies were approved, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Data from the USTR shows the relief was granted to products including surgical drapes, examination gloves, sanitization products, isolation gowns, and some other products.

Medline Industries Inc., one of the applicants, said in the application form that there is currently a critical shortage of face masks due to the coronavirus outbreak.

At the same time, there are a very limited number of face mask manufacturers in the United States that can produce FDA-approved face masks, and supplies from other countries are not sufficient to replace imports from China.

Shifting supply for face masks will take at least 28 months, the company said.

One USTR document (pdf) shows that the application from Medline for face masks was granted by the USTR on March 5.

The USTR didnt respond to an email requesting comment at the time of publication.

U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) urged USTR to remove tariffs from medical supplies critical to the coronavirus response on Feb. 28.

“To ensure that the United States is prepared to contain and combat the spread of this outbreak, it is crucial that there is a robust supply of critical medical products like gloves, thermometers, and medical caps,” Gardner said in a statement on March 6. “I applaud USTR for following through on my request to remove tariffs on these items to address medical supply chain concerns and public health demands.”

However, one company granted tariff relief said the move only has economic implications, but will not change the supply chain pressure following the coronavirus outbreak.

“This tariff piece is more of an economic piece within the supply chain,” Ron Prybella, spokesman for Medegen Medical Products of Hauppauge in New York told The Wall Street Journal. Medegen was granted 16 tariff exclusions by USTR.

The Trump administration implemented several measures to increase medical supplies to health care workers and to encourage the production of respiratory protective devices.

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