The Associated Press reports:
France’s president says the government is requisitioning all current and future stocks of protective masks.
In a tweet, President Emmanuel Macron said the masks would be distributed to health workers and people in France who have been sickened by the coronavirus outbreak spreading through the country.
The government on Tuesday reported a total of 204 cases, up 13 from the previous day, and a total of four deaths. The latest was a 92-year-old man in Brittany, where there has been a cluster of COVID-19 illnesses and thousands of children are being kept home from school.
Nous réquisitionnons tous les stocks et la production de masques de protection. Nous les distribuerons aux professionnels de santé et aux Français atteints par le Coronavirus.
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) March 3, 2020
EN DIRECT | Coronavirus COVID-19 : le Président @EmmanuelMacron est au centre de crise du ministère des Solidarités et de la Santé pour faire le point. https://t.co/xcinJw2ofw
— Élysée (@Elysee) March 3, 2020