3M sues Florida company that sold 10K counterfeit N95 masks to HCMC
3M has obtained a temporary injunction against a Florida company that sold counterfeit versions of its N95 masks, with a Minnesota hospital among the customers.
The injunction was granted in U.S. District Court in Minnesota, with 3M accusing Florida's Nationwide of "deceptively using 3M's registered trademarks" to advertise and sell counterfeit masks, which are vital for healthcare workers battling COVID-19.
Among the customers who bought the counterfeit masks was Hennepin County Medical Center, with the suit filed by 3M revealing that the Minneapolis hospital bought 10,000 masks from Nationwide.
What's more, Nationwide allegedly marked up the price of the masks by 625% of what 3M sells them for.
3M argued that Nationwide's efforts in providing what hospital workers thought were genuine N95 masks "were unlawful and endangered the lives of essential medical workers."
"3M worked to confirm for Hennepin County Medical Center that the respirators they purchased through a non-authorized distributor purporting to be 3M N95 respirators were counterfeit," the company said Friday.
"Those respirators have been seized and removed from circulation."
