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Shoppers walk out with full baskets from a Costco store in Washington, DC on May 5.
AFP via Getty Images
Costco Wholesale Corp. will require all employees and customers to wear masks or face shields starting Monday.
Costco COST,
has demanded masks in stores since May 4, but customers who could not wear a face mask due to a health issue were exempt from the rule. This will no longer be the case.
“If a member has a medical condition that prevents them from wearing a mask, they should wear a face shield at Costco,” CEO Craig Jelinek said in a letter to members Thursday.
The new rules will apply to everyone except children under 2 years old.
“This updated policy may seem inconvenient to some, but we think the added security is worth any inconvenience,” Jelinek said. “Our goal is to continue to provide a safe shopping environment for our members and guests, and to provide a safe working environment for our employees.”
Mask warrants have become a political hot potato in parts of the country, but public health experts have urged face masks as a simple but effective way to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Earlier this week, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention strengthened its recommendation for face masks, saying studies show masks also protect the wearer, whereas before masks were viewed more as a way to protect others.
Costco’s new policy comes as new cases of the coronavirus rise across the country, with more than 160,000 new cases as of Thursday, New York Times data showed, another grim record.
Since the start of the pandemic, the United States has reported more than 10.5 million cases of the coronavirus, with more than 242,000 deaths, both the most in the world, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Costco sales have increased as consumers stock up on food and supplies while staying at home due to coronavirus restrictions, with October sales increasing 16% from the previous year. Costco shares are up 28% year-to-date, versus the S&P 500’s SPX,
Gain of 9.5%.
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