The US Agency for International Development (USAID) has sent additional emergency medical supplies to help Pakistan fight the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.
The independent agency mobilized another plane full of emergency medical supplies, which were also sent to Nepal.
This shipment departed Travis Air Force Base in California carrying one million masks, including 928,000 KN95 masks from FEMA and 96,000 surgical masks donated by Medshare(link is external), in partnership with Kaiser Permanente(link is external).
For Nepal, the assistance include pulse oximeters and personal protective equipment for Nepal, including 400,000 KN95 masks from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and approximately 450,000 disposable gowns donated by the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.
This assistance builds on previous airlifts carrying thousands of surgical masks, face shields, and gloves to Nepal and thousands of pulse oximeters and pieces of personal protective equipment to Pakistan, USAID said in an official statement.
These emergency medical supplies will help protect healthcare professionals in both countries and demonstrate the United States’ ongoing support in the fight against COVID-19 in South Asia.
USAID has so far delivered approximately $66 million in urgently needed supplies over the past seven weeks to South Asian countries, including Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Since COVID-19 first broke out, the United States has mobilized a whole-of-government response to deliver urgent, lifesaving assistance for millions of people.
