一月和二月，当美国冠状病毒在其始发地造成严重破坏时，美国外科手术口罩，呼吸机和其他个人防护装备对中国的出口激增，而美国情报机构警告说，这种病毒很快就会传播。
在今年的前两个月中，美国公司向中国售出了价值超过1750万美元的口罩，超过1360万美元的手术服和超过2720万美元的呼吸机，远远超过过去十年中的任何其他类似时期，根据美国人口普查局提供的最新外贸数据。
《今日美国》对贸易数字的分析是在全国性危机前线的医疗专业人员表示，他们被迫重复使用或不使用个人防护设备（例如口罩和面罩）以弥补短缺的情况。一些州还争先恐后地寻找呼吸机，为可能需要呼吸机的患者做好准备。
一月和二月，白宫和国会情报委员会听取了有关冠状病毒范围和威胁的简报，但唐纳德·特朗普总统仍未停止关键医疗设备的出口，到目前为止，至少有54个其他国家采取了此举。
数据显示，即使冠状病毒的威胁已经消除，美国制造商如何提高产量并清理库存，以向中国供应防护医疗设备数周。CDC于1月20日在美国报告了第一例病例。在接下来的两周内，世界卫生组织和美国卫生与公共服务部宣布该疾病为紧急公共卫生事件。
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1M口罩抵达美国以协助抗击病毒
一架载有重要的个人防护设备用品的飞机抵达了马萨诸塞州的波士顿。（4月2日）。
疾病预防控制中心（CDC）报道，截至周四，在美国已有213,000多人受到感染，5,600多人死亡。
杜克大学（Duke University）经济学家米歇尔·康诺利（Michelle Connolly）说：“显然，中国的需求激增，从根本上讲，这是一个自由市场。美国的情况显然正在发生，尤其是对中国的影响。”
仅在1月份，美国就向中国出口了价值超过170万美元的口罩，是去年1月的两倍多。数据显示，2月份的出货量猛增至1580万美元。
为美国在华居民提供运输服务的公司LuggEasy的联合创始人王杰西（Jesse Wang）证实2月份口罩出口激增。仅在2020年初，他的公司就从美国向中国出口了14,000至15,000磅的口罩。
口罩的零售价大约为50美分，可能要高于批发客户的支付价格，根据贸易数据，这意味着在今年第二个月内，有3160万口外科口罩被运到了中国。
总的来说，总数超过2850万个口罩，美国近200个城市的市长告诉一家贸易组织，他们需要与冠状病毒的爆发作斗争。
通风机也看到了峰值。去年头两个月，美国向中国出口了价值1,140万美元的呼吸机，而今年前两个月，美国向中国出口了价值2,140万美元的呼吸机，就在几周前，各州和医院开始向联邦政府求助。
根据型号的不同，呼吸机的价格从20,000美元到50,000美元不等，这意味着仅在1月和2月，美国就向中国派出了540至1,360台呼吸机。
美国国务院还在2月向中国捐赠了17.8吨医疗设备。大规模捐赠包括“口罩，礼服，纱布，呼吸器和其他重要材料”。
人口普查局以代表产品销售价格的美元价值收集数据。这些项目的总出口额可能会更大，因为人口普查数据无法捕获家庭成员可能寄往中国的小型私人货物或不受某些归档要求限制的小型包裹。
白宫没有立即回应置评请求。
国内需求猛增
全国各地的卫生保健专业人员在社交媒体和新闻报道中表示，他们担心自己的生命，因为他们被迫在整个星期内定量配给一次性防护设备。
私人公民自己缝制口罩，作为临时解决方案捐赠给当地医院，这样工人就不必在头上扎头巾了。自星期三爆发以来，一名新泽西州男子是第一位死于冠状病毒的急诊室医生。休斯顿的一名护士也在与感染作斗争。
其他防护服（例如手术服）的出口也猛增。数据显示，1月份美国向中国出口了价值超过27.1万美元的此类用品，是去年1月份的9倍。在二月份，这些出货量达到了1,340万美元。
佛罗里达州应急管理总监贾里德·莫斯科维茨（Jared Moskowitz）表示，他的团队在一个多月前开始向私人供应商订购呼吸器，口罩，礼服和其他用品，但截至周四，仅收到了订购量的10％。
“我现在从分销商那里听说，外国政府正在这些工厂里出现现金，并使其他有待处理订单的人望而却步，” Moskowitz告诉《今日美国》，并参考了与作为供应链中间商的经纪人的对话。
Moskowitz说：“必须对此进行研究，以弄清楚我们如何允许一家可能是最重要的个人防护设备制造商的美国公司向全球而不是他们的祖国提供粮食。”
莫斯科维茨并不孤单。全国192个城市的市长在周五发布的一项调查中说，他们没有足够的口罩供其第一反应人员和医务人员使用，还有186个城市的市长说，他们面临其他个人防护装备短缺的问题。
调查显示，这些城市需要2850万个口罩，2440万个其他类型的个人防护设备和13.9万个通风机。受访者不包括美国一些最大城市的市长，例如纽约和芝加哥。
特朗普周三表示，国家战略储备（几乎是用于应急的一系列疫苗和各种医疗用品）几乎没有个人防护设备。
特朗普周三表示：“我们正在向50个州提供大量医疗设备和用品。” 他说：“我们也将相当多的时间推迟了。”他指的是为了满足高峰需求而节省下来的呼吸机。
特朗普说：“即使在我们为将来的某些灾难而储存之后，我们很快将处于一个我们将无法使用的地方，我们希望不会发生。” “我们将向世界各国分发产品。我们要去意大利，我们要去法国，我们要去西班牙。”
副总统迈克·彭斯（Mike Pence）周三表示，美国已在全国范围内分发了“超过1160万个N95口罩，遍布全国的8100多个呼吸机以及数百万个口罩，手术口罩和手套。”
贸易问题
由于国内公司一直在向其他地方出口救生设备，特朗普政府一直在对类似进口产品设置壁垒。
彼得森国际经济研究所高级研究员查德·鲍恩（Chad Bown）表示，即使冠状病毒到达我们的海岸，政府仍继续对中国从美国进口的许多医疗产品征收关税。
特朗普政府在3月10日和3月12日宣布，他们将放宽这些关税。
鲍恩称此举是承认政府的贸易政策正在危害公共健康。他说，放宽关税之前，关税已经影响到“美国从中国进口的医疗用品近50亿美元，约占从所有国家进口的医疗用品的26％。”
一周后，特朗普发布了一项行政命令，援引《国防生产法》，赋予联邦政府权力，迫使公司生产医疗设备并在与其他任何合同签订之前满足国防相关需求。
该命令中的语言还允许主管部门控制“个人防护设备和通风机”在民用市场的分配。目前尚不清楚总统将如何处理这一权力。
现在，经济学家警告说，各国正在使用诸如出口禁令和关税之类的贸易保护主义贸易政策，以将医疗用品保留在其本国，而这可能会给需要该用品的医院和卫生专业人士适得其反。
瑞士圣加仑大学的一个小组在3月23日的一项研究中表示，对物品征收任何关税将提高医院和卫生专业人员为这些产品支付的价格。该小组建议各国政府重新评估其限制，以应对COVID-19的社会挑战。
鲍恩通常将自由贸易作为一项经济政策来支持，但他也表示这将有益于公共卫生。他说，关于冠状病毒将对世界哪些地区造成严重影响，从而切断世界上任何地区的生产，存在太多不确定性。
鲍恩说：“大流行向世界揭示的是，没有任何地方是安全的。” “在大流行时期，立即开放国际贸易，为您提供了更多的选择，供您选择从何处采购这种材料。”
本文来自雅虎新闻
由网友昼夜颠翻译
原文如下：
U.S. exported millions in masks and ventilators ahead of the coronavirus crisis
U.S. exports of surgical masks, ventilators and other personal protective gear to China skyrocketed in January and February, when the coronavirus was wreaking havoc in the country where it began and as U.S. intelligence agencies warned it would soon spread.
American companies sold more than $17.5 million worth of face masks, more than $13.6 million in surgical garments and more than $27.2 million in ventilators to China during the first two months of the year, far exceeding that of any other similar period in the past decade, according to the most recent foreign trade data available from the U.S. Census Bureau.
USA TODAY’s analysis of the trade numbers comes as medical professionals on the front lines of the nationwide crisis say they are being forced to reuse or go without personal protective equipment like surgical masks and face shields to account for a shortage. Some states also are scrambling to find ventilators to prepare for a crush of patients expected to need them.
The White House and congressional intelligence committees were briefed on the scope and threat of the coronavirus in January and February, but President Donald Trump has not stopped exports of key medical equipment – a move taken by at least 54 other countries so far.
The data show how U.S. manufacturers stepped up production and cleared out inventory to supply protective medical equipment to China for weeks, even as the threat of the coronavirus became clear. The CDC reported its first case in the United States on Jan. 20. Within the next two weeks, the World Health Organization and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services had declared the disease a public health emergency.
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A plane carrying supplies of vital personal protective equipment for health workers battling the coronavirus pandemic arrived in Boston, Massachusetts on Thursday. (April 2).
More than 213,000 people have been infected and more than 5,600 have died in the U.S. as of Thursday, the CDC reported.
“Clearly there was a surge in demand going on in China, and fundamentally this was a free market" decision, said Michelle Connolly, a Duke University economist. “What was in the U.S. was clearly going out, and specifically to China.”
The U.S. exported more than $1.7 million worth of surgical masks to China in January alone – more than double the previous January. In February, shipments surged to $15.8 million, the data show.
Jesse Wang, co-founder of LuggEasy, a company that provides shipping services to Chinese residents in the U.S., confirmed the surge of masks exports in February. His company exported 14,000 to 15,000 pounds of masks from the U.S. to China in early 2020 alone.
At a retail price of roughly 50 cents a mask – which is likely higher than what wholesale customers would have paid – that meant more than 31.6 million surgical masks were shipped to China during the second month of the year, based on the trade data.
Taken together, the numbers add up to well over the 28.5 million face masks that mayors of nearly 200 U.S. cities told a trade organization they need to combat the coronavirus outbreak.
Ventilators, too, saw a spike. The U.S. exported $11.4 million worth of the breathing machines to China in the first two month of last year compared with $27.2 million in the first two months of this year, just weeks before states and hospitals started begging the federal government to send them more.
The price of ventilators vary from about $20,000 to $50,000 depending on the model, meaning the U.S. sent anywhere from 540 to 1,360 of them to China in January and February alone.
The U.S. Department of State also donated 17.8 tons of medical equipment to China in February. The mass donation included “masks, gowns, gauze, respirators, and other vital materials.”
The Census Bureau collects the data as a dollar value representing the product’s sale price. The total exports of these items could be greater, because the Census data does not capture small, private shipments that family members may have sent to China, or small packages that are exempt from certain filing requirements.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Domestic demand soars
Health care professionals across the nation have said on social media and in news reports that they fear for their lives because they are being forced to ration disposable protective equipment for the entire week.
Private citizens are sewing masks themselves to donate to local hospitals as a makeshift solution so workers don’t have to tie bandanas around their faces. On Wednesday, a New Jersey man was the first emergency room doctor to die from the coronavirus since the outbreak. A nurse in Houston is also fighting the infection.
Exports of other protective garments, like surgical suits, skyrocketed, too. The U.S. shipped more than $271,000 worth of such supplies to China in January – nine times more than the previous January, the data show. In February, those shipments reached $13.4 million.
Jared Moskowitz, Florida’s emergency management director, said his team started placing orders for respirators, masks, gowns and other supplies from private vendors more than a month ago but received only about 10% of what it ordered as of Thursday.
“I’m now hearing from distributors that foreign governments are showing up with cash at these factories and bumping everybody else down the line who had orders pending,” Moskowitz told USA TODAY, referencing conversations with brokers who serve as supply chain middlemen.
"This is going to have to be looked at to figure out how we allowed a U.S. company, the maker of perhaps the most important pieces of personal protective equipment, to feed the globe but not their home country,” Moskowitz said.
Moskowitz is not alone. The mayors of 192 cities across the country said in a survey released Friday that they do not have sufficient face masks for their first responders and medical personnel, and 186 cities said they faced a shortage of other personal protective equipment.
The survey said the cities need 28.5 million face masks, 24.4 million other types of personal protective equipment and 139,000 ventilators. The respondents did not include mayors of some of the nation’s largest cities, like New York and Chicago.
On Wednesday, Trump said the Strategic National Stockpile – a collection of vaccines and various medical supplies kept for emergencies – is almost out of personal protective equipment.
“We’re giving massive amounts of medical equipment and supplies to the 50 states,” Trump said Wednesday. “We also are holding back quite a bit,” he said, referring to ventilators that are being saved to meet peak demand.
“We will fairly soon be at a point where we have far more than we can use, even after we stockpile for some future catastrophe, which we hope doesn’t happen,” Trump said. “We’re going to be distributing to countries around the world. We’ll go to Italy, we’ll go to France, we’ll go to Spain.”
Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday that the U.S. has distributed across the country “more than 11.6 million N95 masks, more than 8,100 ventilators around the nation, and millions of face shields, surgical masks and gloves.”
Trade issues
As domestic firms kept exporting lifesaving equipment elsewhere, the Trump administration kept putting barriers on similar imports.
According to Chad Bown, a senior researcher at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, the government continued placing tariffs on Chinese imports of many medical products into the U.S. even as the coronavirus reached our shores.
The Trump administration announced on March 10 and March 12 that they would relax those tariffs.
Bown called the move an acknowledgement that the administration’s trade policies were endangering public health. By the time they were relaxed, he said, tariffs already affected “nearly $5 billion of U.S. imports of medical goods from China, about 26% of all medical goods imported from all countries.”
A week later, Trump issued an executive order invoking the Defense Production Act that gives the federal government the power to force companies to produce medical equipment and fulfill needs related to national defense before any other contracts.
The language in the order also allows the administration to control distribution in civilian markets of “personal protective equipment and ventilators.” It’s not clear what the president will do with this authority.
Economists are now warning that countries are using protectionist trade policies such as export bans and tariffs in an effort to keep medical supplies in their countries, and that these could backfire for hospitals and health professionals who need the supplies.
A team at the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland said in a March 23 study that any tariffs on items will increase the prices that hospitals and health professionals pay for these products. The team recommended that governments reassess their restrictions to meet the social challenge of COVID-19.
Bown generally supports free trade as an economic policy, but he also said it will benefit the public health response. There is too much uncertainty, he said, about which parts of the world will be hit hard by the coronavirus to cut off any areas of the world from production.
“What the pandemic has revealed to the world is that nowhere is safe,” Bown said. “Keeping open to international trade right now, in a time of pandemic, gives you many, many more options about where you might be able to source this kind of material from.”
USA TODAY used the latest trade data published by the U.S. Census Bureau for the analysis and looked at each commodity’s trade value based on its Harmonized System Code, known as HS code. The HS codes for personal