(16 Apr 2020) FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: apus134345
More local governments in the US are requiring customers to wear face masks before entering grocery stores and other essential businesses.
The new rulings are an extra step in combating the new coronavirus and go beyond the recommendation a few weeks ago from Centers for Disease Control to wear cloth face coverings in public settings.
Leaders in New York City and a handful of counties in Maryland joined other places like the District of Columbia to make face masks mandatory inside retail establishments.
Staff are positioned outside some stores to enforce the new rule, and are turning customers away who do not have a way to cover their face.
DC native Richard Teare agrees with the extra precaution, and carries a N-95 mask whenever he venutres out of the house
"It's the thing to do. I mean first of all we're under orders, but also it's only sensible," Teare said.
Teare is coming up with creative solutions to avoid exposure to the virus and still get his groceries.
"I haven't been inside a grocery store for more than three weeks," Teare said. "Everything we've had I've either picked up here at Broad Branch Market or we've had delivered from a supermarket. So that was before the mask rule went into affect, and I'm not sure what it would be like inside one of those places today."
Tracy Stannard, co-owns Broad Branch Market with John Fielding in Northwest DC.
On April 1st the neighborhood store stopped allowing customers inside, and like many restaurants, switched to only offering delivery or pick up.
"Yeah it got too close, it got too crowded, and it was difficult for us to keep working with the customer so close," Stannard said. "And honestly it was my employees that were uncomfortable. Our staff we're about at 50% staff now just because people have chosen not to work on the front lines as they say."
Stannard is glad she is offering neighbors an option to still get groceries even if they forget, or can not afford to buy or create their owns face masks.
"You know if people can find masks I think that is really the challenge now," Stannard said. "We have friends making ours. So you know you do what you can to keep others safe, to keep yourself safe."
Stannard said her staff wear masks and gloves as they prepare food items to be left of the front porch for pick up, and most customers are paying online to avoid paying with cash or card on site.
Other states like Virginia are not pressing to make masks mandatory in stores. Instead Gov. Ralph Northam is strongly suggesting and encourgaging the public to use face coverings.
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