Walgreens reinstates mandatory face covers for employees

DEERFIELD - Walgreens on Wednesday said it now requires all U.S. employees to wear face covers, and everyone at support offices to be vaccinated (or enroll in a testing program).

The decision was made as demand for COVID-19 vaccinations has increased more than 30% in some key areas of the country and testing has more than doubled, the drugstore chain said.

"As always, our top priority is ensuring the health and safety of our team members, customers and patients, and as a company deeply committed to health and wellness, our mission has never been more critical," said Roz Brewer, CEO, Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. "COVID-19 vaccines have been proven to be safe and effective, and are critical to stopping the spread of this terrible virus and ensuring all our communities are protected."

The recent increase in COVID-19 levels, particularly the Delta variant, is driving greater demand for vaccines and testing across Walgreens stores. Walgreens has administered more than 29 million COVID-19 vaccines to date - approximately eight months after beginning the vaccination effort on Dec. 18, 2020.

Team members based in the company's U.S. support offices are required to be fully vaccinated by Sept. 30 with any of the vaccines currently available. Team members who work in these locations who are unable to be vaccinated will be required to enroll in a COVID-19 testing program.

While Walgreens strongly encourages COVID-19 vaccination for all team members, at this time, this mandate does not apply to U.S. team members in stores, distribution centers or other facilities or non-U.S. support offices, the company said.