The federal government has suspended shipments of N95 respirators from a Montreal-based supplier after about eight million of the masks made in China failed to meet specifications.
The office of Procurement Minister Anita Anand said Friday that of the nearly 11 million masks received from the distributor, about one million met federal standards and another 1.6 million masks are still being tested.
N95 masks used to protect against COVID-19 are so-named because they are supposed to screen out 95 per cent of small particles.
Anand's office said none of the approximately eight million masks that fell below federal standards were distributed for medical use, though assessment is ongoing for other uses.
Her office declined to name the distributor, citing ongoing discussions about reimbursement or discounts, or both, for the masks in question.
