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Riverside County is giving away 10 million masks to help combat COVID-19.
Since announcing “Masks are Medicine” last week, the county has given more than 50,000 masks to nonprofits for distribution, according to a statement on the county’s website.
“Because we do not have a vaccine or cure for COVID, masks are one of the safest, cheapest, and most effective ways to prevent the spread of infection,” said Dr. Geoffrey Leung, ambulatory care director with the Riverside University Health System, in the statement.
“Good hand washing, physical distancing and covering the face can decrease our risk for infection by 95 percent. If we had a medicine that could decrease our risk of getting COVID by 95 percent, everyone would be taking it.”
The masks are being given out by nonprofits, churches, senior meal delivery programs, and local businesses. Anyone who visits a county or state-run testing location will receive a mask.
The campaign includes a pledge drive in which people are asked to avoid large social gatherings and to wear a mask cover whenever they go out in public, according to the statement.
