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NC Getting PPE, Still Needs N95 Masks

North Carolina Emergency Management Director Mike Sprayberry
N.C. Department of Public Safety

In a briefing Monday afternoon, state Emergency Management Director Mike Sprayberry said North Carolina has much of the personal protective equipment needed for healthcare workers to conduct ongoing COVID-19 testing.

The state has more than 100 days worth of gloves, more than 60 days worth of surgical masks and more than 35 days worth of face shields.

"But the gowns and N-95 masks are very hard to get, and we have less than a week's supply of those," he said at the briefing.

Sprayberry said a shortage of PPE alone would not prevent the state from re-opening, but it is one of a number of metrics the governor's task force will be considering.

Sprayberry said shipments of about 800,000 N-95 masks and about 25,000 gowns are expected to arrive in the next week.

Cole del Charco is an audio producer and writer based in Durham. He's made stories for public radio's All Things Considered, Morning Edition and Marketplace. Before joining Due South, he spent time as a freelance journalist, an education and daily news reporter for WUNC, and a podcast producer for WFAE in Charlotte.
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