Prince George’s County in Maryland will require that people wear face coverings while shopping at stores and riding the bus, County Executive Angela Alsobrooks announced Saturday.
Ms. Alsobrooks, a Democrat, said that she is signing an executive order that will put the requirement into place across PG County effective this Wednesday, April 15, following the lead of neighboring localities in the capital region taking similar measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, the contagious respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
“The safety and wellbeing of all Prince Georgians during this pandemic is my top priority,” Ms. Alsobrooks said in a statement. “For the protection of employees who work in these establishments, as well as the customers who need these essential services, it is critical that each person does their part to cover their faces and minimize their exposure to others.”
The order will require that a face covering is worn while shopping inside grocery stores, pharmacies and large chain retail establishments, as well as while riding “TheBus,” Prince George’s County’s bus system. It will also require that the establishments promote social distancing practices inside and outside of the stores as customers wait.
“These steps will be critical to help us flatten the curve and prevent the spread of COVID-19,” added Prince George’s County Health Officer Earnest Carter. “We know there are people with the virus who are walking around and showing no symptoms, and these actions will prevent them from spreading it to others. Consider it an act of love.”
Similar measures were announced this week for neighboring Montgomery County in Maryland and Washington, D.C., where health officials have warned a COVID-19 “hot spot” risks emerging as the outbreak ravages on.
More than 522,000 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in the U.S. as of Saturday, according to data maintained by Johns Hopkins University. More than 7,600 of those cases are in Maryland, with Prince George’s having the state’s highest concentration of confirmed infections.
