(FOX 9) - Minnesota-based company 3M reported Monday that the company is seeing an increase in demand for protective health equipment, such as face masks, as the coronavirus outbreak continues.
As of Monday afternoon, there are more than 2,700 cases of the viral respiratory illness worldwide—most of them in Wuhan. Eighty-one people have died in the outbreak so far, all of them in China.
"3M is seeing an increased demand for respiratory protection products in China following the outbreak of a newly identified coronavirus (2019 novel Coronavirus, 2019-nCoV)," the company said in a release. "In response, 3M is increasing respirator production to help meet demand, and working with distributors to help ensure they have inventory to meet end-user demand. 3M is committed to supporting the public health and governmental response to the Coronavirus while maintaining supply to existing customers."
Last week, Minnesota health officials said they were evaluating two people in Minnesota for possible coronavirus. MDH sent samples from both patients to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for testing, and the results came back negative over the weekend.
The CDC has confirmed five cases of coronavirus in the United States—two in southern California and one each in Washington state, Chicago and Arizona.