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In its latest effort to control the spread of COVID-19, the White House announced last week that it would distribute 400 million high-quality N95 face masks to Americans in the coming weeks.
The government also rolled out a website last week where households can order four free at-home COVID-19 tests.
The masks that are part of the federal program are known as N95 respirators and will come from the Strategic National Stockpile, the country’s emergency reserve of medical supplies. For much of 2020, the stockpile faced major shortages of personal protective equipment, but in recent months, N95s have become more widely available.
The White House said N95 masks would be available for the public to pick up at tens of thousands of locations across the country.
According to the White House, many pharmacies and other sites that offer COVID-19 vaccines will also distribute free N95 masks, including CVS, Health Mart, Rite-Aid, Walgreens, Walmart, and community health centers.
In a statement, CVS Pharmacy said the free N95 masks will be distributed at its stores in the coming weeks. Walgreens said that it will have free N95 masks available in varying sizes at select locations nationwide while supplies last.
Masks will start to become available by the end of this week, and the program will be fully up and running by early February.
According to government officials, there’s a limit of three masks per person to “ensure broad access for all Americans.”
The N95 respirators that will be available are close-fitting masks that form a tight seal around the nose and mouth and are capable of filtering at least 95% of small and large airborne particles, including those that may contain viruses and bacteria.
In updated guidance published Jan. 14, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said N95 respirators are more effective at preventing transmission of the coronavirus than cloth and surgical masks.
