The federal government will send more than 25 million masks to community health centers and food banks in areas most hard hit by the pandemic next month, the White House said Feb. 24.
The masks will be made in compliance with CDC guidance and will be reusable. They will not affect the availability of masks for healthcare workers, the White House said.
The masks will be made available for free at 60,000 food pantries and 1,300 community health centers in areas most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Jeff Zients, the White House COVID-19 response coordinator, said in a news conference that health officials are regularly looking at data to determine which populations are most in need, The New York Times reported.
"Not all Americans are wearing masks regularly. Not all Americans have access, and not all masks are equal," Mr. Zients said, according to the Times.
Two-thirds of the people served by community health centers are living in poverty, 60 percent are racial or ethnic minorities, and nearly 1.4 million are unhoused, the White House said. Anyone in the community will be able to pick up a mask from a local community health center.
The initiative to send the masks costs $86 million, according to the Times.
Read the White House's full news release here.