TSA Agents, CDC Screeners Demand More Effective Masks to Protect Against Coronavirus

After airport security screeners called for the government to provide N95 respirators instead of surgical masks, the CDC has begun to make them “optional” for those employees.

Agents for the Transportation Security Administration are concerned about protecting themselves from contracting COVID-19, leading union representatives to push for more effective masks for airport security screeners.

The AFGE TSA Council 100, which represents about 45,000 TSA officers, sent an email on Tuesday to TSA Administrator David Pekoske to supply N95 respirator masks to the agency’s employees, Reuters reported.

Those concerns were escalated by reports last week that at least two Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at Los Angeles International Airport tested positive for the coronavirus.

As of now, agents have the option to wear surgical masks, but those masks are not produced to block small particles that could transmit the coronavirus, according to Reuters. The N95 respirators, union president Hydrick Thomas said, can protect wearers from smaller pathogens that spread COVID-19.

“Everything we do is for the safety of the passengers, but at the same time you have to safeguard yourself,” Thomas told Reuters.

One CDC official told Reuters that surgical masks, which were previously recommended to TSA officers, “won’t protect” screeners from getting the virus.

“They just protect us from infecting someone else,” the CDC medical official, who was involved in airport screening, said. “We want to know why we can’t wear N-95 masks. It’s crazy … You might as well have a tissue over your face for all the good it will do.”

In response to the report, the CDC released new guidelines to make the N95 masks optional for those screeners. There are two types of N95 respirators, according to Occupational Health & Safety magazine: surgical and industrial.

Surgical N95 respirators are designed for healthcare workers and fit tightly around the nose and mouth. If worn correctly, they can block at least 95 percent of small airborne particles. However, healthcare professionals are legally required to undergo annual fit tests for these masks, and they are not recommended for the general population.

Industrial respirators are designed to reduce the wearer’s exposure against certain airborne particles and aerosols that do not have oil. Most CDC screeners have been using the surgical respirators.

The federal government is addressing a global shortage, caused by the rapid purchase of the respirators by non-healthcare professionals, by working with manufacturers to produce 500 million respirators in the next six to 12 months. About 13 million are on hand as of last week, according to Reuters.

About the Author

Haley Samsel is an Associate Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.

Featured

  • New Report Reveals Top Trends Transforming Access Controller Technology

    Mercury Security, a provider in access control hardware and open platform solutions, has published its Trends in Access Controllers Report, based on a survey of over 450 security professionals across North America and Europe. The findings highlight the controller’s vital role in a physical access control system (PACS), where the device not only enforces access policies but also connects with readers to verify user credentials—ranging from ID badges to biometrics and mobile identities. With 72% of respondents identifying the controller as a critical or important factor in PACS design, the report underscores how the choice of controller platform has become a strategic decision for today’s security leaders. Read Now

  • Overwhelming Majority of CISOs Anticipate Surge in Cyber Attacks Over the Next Three Years

    An overwhelming 98% of chief information security officers (CISOs) expect a surge in cyber attacks over the next three years as organizations face an increasingly complex and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven digital threat landscape. This is according to new research conducted among 300 CISOs, chief information officers (CIOs), and senior IT professionals by CSC1, the leading provider of enterprise-class domain and domain name system (DNS) security. Read Now

  • ASIS International Introduces New ANSI-Approved Investigations Standard

    • Guard Services
  • Cloud Security Alliance Brings AI-Assisted Auditing to Cloud Computing

    The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining standards, certifications, and best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment, today introduced an innovative addition to its suite of Security, Trust, Assurance and Risk (STAR) Registry assessments with the launch of Valid-AI-ted, an AI-powered, automated validation system. The new tool provides an automated quality check of assurance information of STAR Level 1 self-assessments using state-of-the-art LLM technology. Read Now

  • Report: Nearly 1 in 5 Healthcare Leaders Say Cyberattacks Have Impacted Patient Care

    Omega Systems, a provider of managed IT and security services, today released new research that reveals the growing impact of cybersecurity challenges on leading healthcare organizations and patient safety. According to the 2025 Healthcare IT Landscape Report, 19% of healthcare leaders say a cyberattack has already disrupted patient care, and more than half (52%) believe a fatal cyber-related incident is inevitable within the next five years. Read Now

New Products

  • Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden Door Controls has relaunched its CV-7600 card readers in response to growing market demand for a more secure alternative to standard proximity credentials that can be easily cloned. CV-7600 readers support MIFARE DESFire EV1 & EV2 encryption technology credentials, making them virtually clone-proof and highly secure.

  • Connect ONE’s powerful cloud-hosted management platform provides the means to tailor lockdowns and emergency mass notifications throughout a facility – while simultaneously alerting occupants to hazards or next steps, like evacuation.

    Connect ONE®

    Connect ONE’s powerful cloud-hosted management platform provides the means to tailor lockdowns and emergency mass notifications throughout a facility – while simultaneously alerting occupants to hazards or next steps, like evacuation.

  • EasyGate SPT and SPD

    EasyGate SPT SPD

    Security solutions do not have to be ordinary, let alone unattractive. Having renewed their best-selling speed gates, Cominfo has once again demonstrated their Art of Security philosophy in practice — and confirmed their position as an industry-leading manufacturers of premium speed gates and turnstiles.