In direct contradiction to advice from medical professionals who are telling people surgical masks are ineffective for general use as protection from COVID-19 and should be spared for health professionals, one Richmond grocery store is telling customers “no mask, no entry.”
New 2000 Supermarket, located in a shopping plaza at No. 3 Road and Leslie Road, has posted a sign on its door saying all customers must wear a mask if they want to enter the store, according to photos shared by Ming Pao Daily News, a Richmond-based Chinese-language newspaper organization.
“You can purchase one at the counter for $1.50 if you don’t have one,” reads the sign in translation from Chinese.
These posters are leaving people wondering if these policies are necessary and if it’s appropriate to take away additional medical supplies that are already running short for health-care workers, according to reports from Ming Pao.
A resident told Ming Pao $1.50 sounds pretty expensive for one mask, but he had to buy one to continue his grocery shopping at the store. Along with masks, the store is asking people to wear gloves which they are giving away for free.
Richmond News contacted New 2000 Supermarket for further details and will update the story if there is a response.
