RUTH MAE BUMANGLAG BSMA-4 BA 428 FS 3:00-4:30

The Demand and Supply of Facemasks: COVID-19

Summary
A new coronavirus illness (COVID-19) epidemic caused by the severe respiratory syndrome
coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) infection emerged in China in late December 2019. Unless you've been
living under a rock, you're aware that 2020 has been rocked by the arrival of the coronavirus, which
began in Wuhan, China. People in China, and in neighboring countries, have become desperate to
protect themselves from the transmission of the virus and that has led to an increased demand for
face masks.
Hospitals, private sellers, doctor offices, and even transportation services are working to meet this
high demand with a steady supply of face masks, but of course, that hasn’t stopped the prices of face
masks from rising in China.
Unfortunately, this is an instance in which some criminals are using a high demand as a chance to
make a killer profit. Just recently, China seized more than 31 million fake face masks that were being
sold during shortages.
Not only are these face masks inadequate, they’re not even approved by the CDC.
The lesson here is that when demand is high and supply is running out, there’s room for people to
make lower quality products for a higher price and get away with it.

Facts of the Case

 COVID-19 has caused a dramatic shortage in the supply of face masks, which is mainly
explained by a surge in demand.
 Meeting demand for face masks has become one of the main issues for governments fighting
the pandemic.
 China was the main producer of masks at the start of the crisis.
 Since the demand of face mask is to high the supply is running out and by that a lot of
manufacturing selling face mask inadequate and they’re not even approved by the CDC.
 China is the major facemask producer in the world, contributing to 50% of global production .

Problems/Issues
 First, some nations have implemented export bans or comparable measure as well as
new authorization or certification procedures, which might create export delays.
Second, COVID-19 has affected domestic transportation and logistics infrastructure, as
well as domestic distribution. Masks have occasionally been in limited supply, not
 because of a scarcity of products, but because they were not reaching health
professionals, despite differences between nations, including the level of readiness of
the health infrastructure. This component of the value chain, which is largely domestic,
may be just as disturbed as the more international part upstream. The major difficulty
has been assessing requirements in real time, prioritizing delivery, and predicting
changes at a time when the entire health system is under strain.
Recommendations
As COVID-19 spreads throughout the world, hospitals are running out of masks. New supplies aren't
being produced quickly enough to keep up with demand, and stocks appear to be insufficient. So, if
no face masks are available, handmade masks, such as bandannas or scarves, might be utilized as a
last option. Cloth masks aren't ideal, but they're better than nothing. Homemade masks can provide
some protection against virus particles.