Here's how and where to pick up free N95 masks in Western Pa.

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Here's how and where to pick up free N95 masks in Western Pa.

Ryan Deto | Monday, January 24, 2022 12:01 a.m.

Dr. LouAnn Woodward, vice chancellor for health affairs and dean of the School of Medicine at the University of Mississippi Medical School, displays two of the acceptable N95 face masks.

The federal government this week will begin providing free N95 masks to those who want them by dipping into the Strategic National Stockpile and distributing the masks throughout the country.

The administration will make 400 million N95 masks available to be picked up for free at local pharmacies and community health centers. In Western Pennsylvania, locations will include CVS, Walgreens, Rite-Aid, Walmart, Giant Eagle and Health Mart, among others.

There will be a limit of three masks per adult.

N95 masks, also called N95 respirators, filter out smaller particles and fit tighter to the face than other masks. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health said this month that N95 masks “offer the highest level of protection” in reducing the spread of covid-19, compared with cloth coverings and other masks.

While Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease expert and critical care and emergency medicine physician based in Pittsburgh, said that N95 masks provide extra protection, he added, “There is no one-size-fits-all mask recommendation, but it’s important for people to have a guide to help them risk calculate with covid-19 and understand the relative protection of different masks they may choose to use, or not use, based on their individual context.”

• Experts back CDC guidance recommending N95, KN95 masks

Local pharmacies and community health centers should start carrying N95 masks by the end of the week. Officials say the distribution program should be fully operational by early February.

The mask distribution effort comes on the heels of another federal effort to send covid-19 home tests to Americans who want them. Households can order up to four free at-home covid tests by visiting covidtests.gov.

The omicron variant continues to spread rapidly throughout Allegheny County, though cases are down slightly from last week. The Allegheny County Health Department reported there were 4,287 new covid cases reported over the past three days, or an average of 1,429 daily cases.

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