Landspítali Discarded Over 540,000 Particle Filter Masks

Landspítali has purchased almost 15 million units of protective equipment in the last two years because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which amounts to over ISK 1.5 billion, reports Vísir.

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A spokesman for Landspítali told news agencies the hospital has disposed of 543,000 units of defective protective equipment—most of them particle filter masks.

The filter masks were the FFP2 or N95 types, and, according to the Office of the Medical Director of Health, are antiviral masks that are “specially designed for use by healthcare professionals who treat people with diseases transmitted by airborne infections such as COVID-19, influenza, tuberculosis or measles.”

The fine masks that Landspítali discarded did not meet the quality requirements that are necessary for certification by the manufacturer, among other issues.

Used protective equipment is incinerated at Kalka landfill. Landspítali also purchased 35,000 testing kits at the beginning of the epidemic, which were destroyed by incineration because they were not accurate enough.

COVID test materials cost ISK 5.5 billion, which includes sampling sticks and glasses used during the testing process.