Plastic Is the Hero of Coronavirus, Says the Plastics Industry

On March 18—a week after the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic—Tony Radoszewski, head of the plastics industry’s main U.S. lobbying group, sent Alex Azar, secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, a strongly worded letter. Bans on single-use items had been proliferating across states and cities for years, but with the virus threatening American lives and livelihoods, he said, enough was enough.

“Single-use plastic products are the most sanitary choice when it comes to many applications, especially the consumption and transport of food, whether purchased at a restaurant or at a grocery store,” he wrote. “We ask that the department speak out against bans on these products as a public safety risk and help stop the rush to ban these products.”