Thread by @AP

THREAD: Why did the US run out of masks, gloves and sanitizer as COVID-19 swept the country?

@AP’s @JulietLinderman and @MendozaMartha spent seven months investigating the collapse of medical supply chains with @frontlinepbs and @GlobalRepCentre

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Remember March? As American hospitals ran out of tests, masks and gowns, President Trump suggested states try the open market .

Governors panicked.

Infection spread, largely unchecked.

@AP found Chinese exports had stalled.

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Just when they were needed most, Malaysian factories supplying the US with medical gloves dropped to half-capacity. The industry is plagued with labor abuses.

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@AP As the first shipments of N95 medical grade masks finally reached the U.S., reporters @JulietLinderman and @MendozaMartha noticed one shipment had ear loops instead of head bands, a tell-tale sign of counterfeits.

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Untested, unapproved, and without a factory of their own. The U.S. government made a big gamble on start-up injection device for COVID-19 vaccines, @AP @frontlinepbs and @GlobalRepCentre reported

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Why are there still N95 shortages? The Trump administration hasn’t made long-term investments in meltblown textile, the key ingredient for the masks.

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When the coronavirus hit the U.S., countless Americans were left unprotected amid a desperate shortage of PPE. There still isn’t enough.

Read more in today's investigation from @AP, @frontlinepbs and @GlobalRepCentre.

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