Phillips County News - One Nation, Under God

As of last week, the Albertsons store in Malta has hung posters letting customers know that facemasks must be worn inside the store at all times in an attempt to combat the COVID-19 virus.

The posters at the Malta store follow an order on the Albertsons’ corporate website announcing Albertsons Companies is requiring its customers to wear face coverings across all of their locations when shopping at their stores for their protection and for that of their associates.

“Throughout this pandemic, the health and safety of everyone who walks through our doors have been our top priority,” the website states. “We appreciate everyone's diligence, cooperation, and support as we all work together to get through these difficult times as safely as possible.”

Albertsons already requires its associates to wear masks, and across the ma-jority of its stores, customers are required to wear face-covering to comply with local orders.

Last Thursday, the PCN observed a total of 30 customers enter the Malta Albertsons. Of the 30, a total of 22 wore masks (some returning to the automobiles to retrieve their masks after seeing the posters) while eight people did not.

Albertson's mask mandate follows Montana Governor Steve Bullock’s mask mandate made on July 15. The directive does not require face coverings in counties with three or fewer active cases or for children under five, though face coverings are strongly encouraged in both cases. Phillips County, as of Monday afternoon, is one of only six of Montana’s 56 counties with no COVID-19 cases. This weekend, about 100 people attended a protest of Montana's mask order Saturday outside the state Capitol before many of them took their message to Gov. Steve Bullock’s home, according to the Independent Record.