Ed. Note: The Alabama Dept. of Public Health released the following statement this week regarding the apparent misconception that county health departments had free masks for the public:
County health departments in Alabama do not have free face masks to distribute to the public. According to information provided to the news media by the federal government, retail pharmacies that are part of the federal COVID-19 vaccine program and community health centers nationwide will be sent masks.
On January 18, the Biden Administration announced that the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) will make more than 400 million NIOSH-approved N95 masks from the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) available to the American people for free.
When more information is known, the Alabama Department of Public Health will post announcements at https://www.alabamapublichealth.gov/index.htmland through the news media.
