SPOKANE, Wash. — Pharmacies across the U.S. are in the process of receiving free N95 masks from the federal government and distributing them to the public.
The mask distribution is part of a federal effort to limit the spread of COVID-19 amid a surge of the highly transmissible omicron variant. The Biden administration announced it was sending 400 million non-surgical N95 masks to pharmacies across the country for Americans to claim for free.
People can now pick up free N95 face masks at some pharmacies and health centers around the Inland Northwest. Some are already distributing them, with others announcing they will begin doing so once they receive them.
Three masks are available per person and are first come first serve. The following is the list of pharmacies in the Spokane area that started offering the free masks to the public:
- Albertsons Inc. is offering the masks at their pharmacy's windows.
- Some Safeway pharmacies in Spokane areas.
- Some Rite Aid Corp at the main pharmacy door.
- Walmart, Inc. has the masks at the main entrance.
Participating pharmacies in Spokane that still don't have the mask but will have them soon are Fred Meyer pharmacies, CVS Pharmacy, Inc., and Walgreens.
For more information and mask availability, people are encouraged to reach out to their nearest pharmacy.