Top nine brick-and-mortar retailers now require coronavirus masks in U.S. stores

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Fri, 2020-07-17 18:43 — mike kraft

Live updates: Top nine brick-and-mortar retailers now require coronavirus masks in U.S. stores With Home Depot and Lowes joining the masked ranks on Friday, the nine largest brick-and-mortar retail companies have adopted new policies to require face coverings in stores. Antonia Farzan, Teo Armus, Rick Noack, Brittany Shammas, Lateshia Beachum, Derek Hawkins, Hannah Denham, Adam Taylor Washington Post

The nine largest brick-and-mortar retail companies, which the National Retail Federation ranks based on global sales, have adopted new policies to require customers to wear masks inside U.S. stores.

Costco began enforcing a mask mandate on May 4, and two months passed before other top retailers followed suit. As the United States has experienced a recent resurgence in the number of cases of the novel coronavirus, as well as spiking hospitalizations and deaths, Walmart, Inc. seemed to have set off a firehouse with its announcement on July 15 to cover its namesake stores and Sam’s Club locations.

Eight more of the largest brick-and-mortar retailers in the U.S. announced similar policies within two days: Kroger, CVS Health, Walgreens, Target, Albertsons Companies (which owns Safeway, Tom Thumb, and Acme, among other brands). Lowe’s and The Home Depot both announced mask requirements Friday.

Here are some significant developments:

The number of new infections reported each day is reaching dizzying new heights. On Friday, the daily U.S. caseload topped 74,000, according to data tracked by The Washington Post.
Masks are now mandatory in more than half of U.S. states — with the governors of Arkansas and Colorado the latest to issue face-covering orders. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R), chairman of the National Governors Association, said that masks should be mandated in states across the country.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Friday announced new guidelines that will bar schools in 32 hot-spot counties from reopening in the fall unless they meet strict standards for preventing the spread of the coronavirus. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) said Friday the state’s schools must resume in-person instruction.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms (D) blasted Georgia’s Republican governor, Brian Kemp (R), for suing to stop block her city’s mask ordinance, accusing him of “putting politics over people.”

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