Since mid-April, San Antonio has required masks in spaces where social distancing is difficult, but that didn't include H-E-B. The Texan grocery chain has never had a policy that requires customers to wear masks — until today.
Effective Monday, June 22, H-E-B stores in Bexar County will require face masks or facial coverings to be worn by all customers.
H-E-B has worked closely with mutliple elected officials through this process, including Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff. The same day H-E-B released their statement on masks, Wolff issued an executive order that requires commerical entities to implement a face mask policy within five calendar days. H-E-B's statement is in-line with this executive order:
"The CDC and State health officials strongly support the use of facial coverings in public as a proven way to slow the spread of COVID-19. Throughout the COVID crisis, H-E-B has worked closely with the Governor and his staff and we appreciate the collaborative work and advocacy to help keep Texans safe," a statement from the company read.
The statement was released Wednesday, June 17, just a day after nine Texas mayors — including San Antonio's Ron Nirenberg — signed a letter to Gov. Greg Abbott asking for the authority to require masks in their respective cities.
Kathleen Creedon can be reached at kathleen@tpr.org or on Twitter at @Kath_Creedon.
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