An elementary school teacher living in Auckland protested that N95 masks should be widely distributed. (Associated Press)
The National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) reported that the cost of buying N95 masks and receiving a quick screening for the Omicron variant at a time when the virus is spreading rapidly reflects the obvious gap between rich and poor, which is annoying for some people but still affordable, but completely unaffordable for other ethnic groups.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated the mask recommendation guidelines on the 14th, saying that disposable N95 or KN95 masks can provide the highest level of protection.
The report pointed out that the use of N95 masks to be discarded once costs an average of about 1 yuan each, and the unit price of viral fast screening agents is about 24 yuan per group, which makes some people feel troublesome, but still affordable, while other ethnic groups are difficult to buy, highlighting that the gap between rich and poor in American society will further deepen with the epidemic.
According to a rolling Shift Project survey of hourly wage workers in the United States, about 75 percent of workers surveyed pointed out that income and expenditure were slightly difficult or very difficult during the epidemic, 40 percent of workers said they could not get 400 yuan in cash out of hand in the event of a change, and about 20 percent of workers surveyed said they were unable to eat a meal because of financial constraints.
Hourly wage workers do not have paid sick leave to take, and they have to continue to work because they have to be paid to support their families, Schneider said. He said: "These workers are on the front line of the virus, we ask them to buy high-quality masks, we want them to pay for fast screening? ”
He pointed out that for many hourly wage workers, it is impossible to spend money on N95 masks and fast screening agents, because it is "really unrealistic" to take care of maintaining food and clothing for three meals and to entrust the task of preventing the spread of the epidemic to economically disadvantaged workers.
The report pointed out that although the federal government has introduced new regulations that allow people to apply for reimbursement from private insurance companies for the purchase of viral home fast screening agents, many people are unable to operate the waiting period of the procedure, and some people do not have private health insurance.
Some members of Congress argue that the Biden administration should do more to combat the spread of the virus.
California Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, and several Democratic members of Congress began pushing for a draft last week requiring the administration to provide three N95 masks to all people living in the United States, NBC reported.