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Assuming purchase prices of two to five euros each, it would cost around 166 to 415 million euros to procure an FFP2 mask for every person in Germany per week.
According to the Institute for Labor Market Research, however, every additional week in lockdown costs the economy around 3.5 billion euros.
In the event of a disaster, it would now seem natural that the state should make every effort to distribute the highly protective masks widely among the population - politicians have been demanding this for months, and the chairman of the World Medical Association, Frank Ulrich Montgomery, made this proposal last April.
The new strategy of the Federal Ministry of Health, on the other hand, provides for citizens of 60 and over and those with special pre-existing illnesses to be given FFP2 masks in pharmacies - after they have received a voucher from the Federal Printing Office in the mail, which in turn first has to be delivered to the health insurance companies.
"There are now people in the pharmacies who have to show vouchers that they do not yet have"
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In practice, this means a gigantic logistical effort - because almost 30 million citizens are entitled to the vouchers.
Some health professionals are stunned.
A well-known German doctor, a member of several medical committees, speaks of “bureaucratic madness” and does not want to read his name in the newspaper in this context.
Thomas Preis, Chairman of the North Rhine Pharmacists' Association, endorses the voucher system, but warns of delay: “There are now people in the pharmacies who have to show vouchers that they do not yet have.
The pressure is increasing daily, also in view of the mutant of the coronavirus, which could spread further on the continent. "
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The problem: The three weeks after the start of the first distribution round are over, the next should start on Wednesday.
So far, those in need have received three masks - one per week.
The delivery of the vouchers was originally announced for "early January" - however, Thomas Preis expects that the majority of the "vouchers" will only end up in the mailboxes of many very old people this weekend.
And he warns of another problem: "The health insurances do not send the vouchers all at once, but in the order of age from 75, from 70 and from 60. It will take longer until everyone has proof."
Free for risk groups - Run on FFP2 masks
From now on, people over the age of 60 and those with previous illnesses can get free FFP2 masks at pharmacies throughout Germany.
But how useful are these masks actually for the risk groups?
Source: WELT / Fanny Fee Werther
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In fact, on Friday morning, for example, the DAK website said: “We have not yet had the subscription coupons.” DAK CEO Andreas Storm, on the other hand, wrote on Twitter on Thursday evening that mailing to around three million insured persons from risk groups is now starting .
However, according to the North Rhine Pharmacy Association, the delay could be even more drastic: "At the request of their insured persons, individual insurance companies have already informed them that the necessary vouchers will not be sent until the end of January," writes the association - in some cases there is a risk of a delay of almost a month.
This annoys pharmacist Preis. "In view of the still too high numbers of infections and the hesitant start of vaccinations, people cannot be expected to wait and consolation for the next masks."
He therefore calls for a pragmatic solution: “For the transition until all vouchers have been delivered, those in need should receive three additional FFP2 masks free of charge - upon presentation of their ID.
That would take a lot of pressure off the boiler. "
Specifically, beneficiaries can pick up six more masks each until February 28 and in a third phase until April 15, this time with a personal contribution of two euros each.
If the ID was sufficient so far, the certificate must now be presented to the Bundesdruckerei - which is too late for delivery to the cash registers.
With the new voucher system, the federal government wants to prevent abuse - which is probably a lesson from the criminal conditions that prevailed on the mask market in the spring.
Some citizens simply resold their masks
And the December distribution was also prone to abuse.
Weeks ago we could read about “mask tourism”: people had gone from pharmacy to pharmacy and stocked up on masks - sometimes in order to then sell them on.
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The Solingen pharmacist Christian Veithen did not observe this phenomenon.
It is true that the previous distribution was a "quick shot" by the Ministry of Health - the pharmacists were insufficiently involved in the planning.
Nevertheless, he draws a predominantly positive conclusion.
However, the current delay in the delivery of vouchers also upsets Veithen.
He announced that he would “not leave those in need out in the rain” without vouchers.
There are enough masks, like Preis, too, for a pragmatic interim solution that does not depend on the costly post.
Also in December, criticism of the pricing of the Ministry of Health was loud.
Pharmacists receive six euros from the federal government for each mask - ultimately tax money.
The costs for the first round of distribution alone amounted to almost 500 million euros.
The Green parliamentary group in the Bundestag is surprised at this unit price and is now demanding an opinion.
Suppliers are also irritated.
In bulk purchases, an FFP2 mask sometimes costs less than one euro, says Achim Theiler from the import company "Franz Mensch", which also supplies protective equipment to pharmacies.
Apotheker Preis in any case draws a positive conclusion from the first mask distribution in December.
Christine Aschenberg-Dugnus disagrees: “Even the first round led to problems with long queues and abuse.
Now the risk of abuse is excluded, but the necessary visit to the pharmacy means there is still an unnecessary risk of infection, "says the health policy spokeswoman for the FDP parliamentary group in the Bundestag.
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Aschenberg-Dugnus is surprised at the paper-heavy and complex solution from Bundesdruckerei: “I don't understand why the masks were not sent by post from the start.
When I was questioned by the federal government in mid-December, the Chancellor assured me that the masks should be sent in a second step, ”she says.
Meanwhile, calls for free masks are getting louder for everyone.
"Medically, I can only support the demand for free FFP2 masks," says pharmacist Preis.
“They offer significantly better protection than surgical masks and those made of cotton.
In view of the fact that the number of cases is still too high, politicians should implement it that way. ”His suggestion: Replace the last letter of the“ AHA rules ”- in“ F ”for FFP2 masks instead of everyday masks.
However, if the claim to FFP2 masks were to be extended to large sections of the population, production would have to be increased drastically.
In May 2020, the Federal Ministry of Economics decided to subsidize mask manufacturers from Germany, for which almost 300 companies had applied by the end of the year.
Further funding was approved in December for research projects on the production of innovative protective equipment - the aim is to strengthen the international competitiveness of German companies.
But a large part of the protective equipment is still imported from the Far East.
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