FFP2 mask demand jumps fivefold in France after hantavirus case

Demand for face masks in France has increased fivefold in under a week after a hantavirus infection left one patient in intensive care and 26 others in confinement.

Suppliers are now warning of shortages and price rises, as pharmacies struggle to secure deliveries.

France’s main wholesale distributors, which supply nearly all pharmacies, have told outlets they can no longer guarantee deliveries of FFP2 and surgical masks, or can only do so in limited quantities.

Demand has surged in recent days as consumers rushed to stock up following official communications on the outbreak, report France Inter.

One pharmacy purchasing platform, Pharmazon, said orders had jumped sharply. Its founder Audrey Lecoq said she typically sells around 2,400 boxes of masks per week to pharmacies, but sold 15,000 boxes in just three days.

“The manufacturing capacity in France is limited,” she said. “We do not hold large stocks, so shortages emerge quickly. It will take a few days for production and distribution to catch up.”

Face mask prices rise

The flurry of demand has also led to an increase in prices. One pharmacist told France Inter the cost of a box of 50 masks has increased from around €5 to €7.

He described the situation as “the harsh law of supply and demand”, warning that further demand could prolong shortages and drive prices higher.

Health authorities have sought to calm public concern, stressing that transmission risk remains limited to close contacts linked to the cruise ship MV Hondius.

There are currently 26 contact cases in France - four passengers from the cruise ship Ambition and 22 who travelled on the plane with a woman from the Netherlands who subsequently died of the virus.

Another patient remains in serious condition in intensive care at Hôpital Bichat in Paris.

However, France’s Health Minister Stéphanie Rist said earlier today, May 14, that all 26 contact cases had tested negative for the virus, but will remain in isolation in hospital nonetheless.

They will be tested for the virus three times a week for the 42 day incubation period as a “precautionary measure,” she said on X.

Officials maintain there is no evidence of community transmission and no recommendation for population-wide mask use. However, they acknowledge that precautionary buying could temporarily strain supply chains already operating with limited reserves.

Do FFP2 masks help against hantavirus?

Health specialists say FFP2 masks can reduce exposure to respiratory droplets in close-contact situations, but stress they are not the primary tool against hantavirus in the current context.

Infectious disease specialist Gilles Pialoux said there is “no phenomenon of an epidemic or pandemic, so nothing justifies a generalised use of masks,” in remarks cited by France Inter.

Authorities maintain that standard hygiene measures and isolation of identified contacts remain the main strategy at present, and that the wider-population are not being advised to wear masks.