Schools, Businesses Get 2 Million Masks, 4,200 Thermometers

(TNS) - Gov. Tony Evers announced Tuesday that his office would be sending more than 2 million cloth face masks to K-12 public, private and charter schools statewide. Another 4,200 infrared thermometers would be sent to schools as well.

According to state numbers, there are approximately 2,240 schools statewide with more than 850,000 students in total.

The masks and thermometers "will be distributed over the coming weeks," Evers said during a briefing with reporters Tuesday.

This announcement comes as school districts try to plan what their educational strategies will be in fall, when schooling is expected to return. Racine Unified has a trio of plans which range from having no in-person schooling to having in-person teaching five days a week like normal, albeit with added cleaning practices as COVID-19 remains a threat nationwide.

A state survey in June showed that nearly 400 out of the state's 464 school districts want to receive PPE (personal protective equipment) if available, according to the Office of the Governor.

A release from the governor's office said that this new distribution of masks comes at no cost to the state, as they were purchased via a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
“We are doing everything we can to ensure that everyone has access to the essential resources and PPE they need to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” Evers said.

Masks for businesses too
The governor's planned distribution of PPE also includes providing 60,000 masks to businesses and food processing plants, where COVID-19 has been shown to spread more easily.
At least one worker at Echo Lake Foods near Burlington has died from the virus, sparking protests that the business and the state did not do enough to protect workers.

"Wisconsin’s agricultural and food businesses have faced many challenges throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Acquiring sufficient PPE has been a significant hurdle, especially for small, local businesses,” stated Randy Romanski, secretary-designee for the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.

Those 60,000 masks will be distributed as follows:
22,500 masks to be distributed by the Wisconsin Restaurant Association
22,500 masks for small grocers to be distributed by Wisconsin Grocers Association
8,000 masks for small food processors to be distributed by the Midwest Food Products Association
2,500 masks for small cheese plants to be distributed by the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association,
2,000 masks for small meat processors
2,000 masks for public-facing workers with the Wisconsin Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association

Masks required in some places
On Tuesday, Dane County became the first community in Wisconsin to issue a requirement for people to wear masks. The order from Public Health Madison and Dane County takes effect Monday and requires the wearing of a mask in all indoor places, except a person's own home. The order is in response to a recent increase in reported COVID-19 virus cases, particularly among young adults.
Milwaukee was also moving forward with plans to issue its own mask requirement.

“Public health research now shows that face coverings are critical to slowing the spread of COVID-19,” Janel Heinrich, director of Public Health Madison and Dane County, said in a statement. “Given the current number of COVID-19 infections in our county, we need to all be wearing face coverings every time we leave the house.”
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