West Des Moines, Iowa — In an effort to protect its customers and employees from COVID-19, Hy-Vee will distribute free masks to those entering its stores starting Monday, July 27th.
The company will hand out more than 3 million free masks in an effort to help support the CDC’s recommendation to wear masks in public by launching a new initiative called “Mask It Up To Shut COVID Down. It’s Your Choice.”
Starting July 27, employees will be stationed at the front doors of all stores to hand out masks to customers who are not wearing one prior to shopping. Customers will also see signage, employee attire, and other reminders around the store about the educational campaign.
A spokesperson for the grocery chain tells KIWA that the wearing of masks in the Hy-Vee stores here in northwest Iowa will NOT be mandatory. Spokesperson Christina Gayman says the only Hy-Vee stores where masks will be mandatory are those located in cities or states that have mask requirements in place. There are no mask requirements in northwest Iowa.
Hy-Vee employees have been wearing masks since nearly the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
