Protective fabric masks that the government will distribute to roughly 62 million households nationwide in an effort to combat the novel coronavirus arrived at a Tokyo post office Thursday.
Two masks for every household will be delivered beginning Friday. Tokyo, where large numbers of cases have been confirmed will be the starting point, and delivery to all households in the nation is to be completed by mid-May.
About 120,000 masks packed in a number of cardboard boxes were deposited Thursday morning at a post office in Setagaya Ward, the most populous of Tokyo's 23 wards. Post office employees and others were busy making delivery preparations. Beginning Friday, the masks will be shipped to households along with care instructions.
Tokyo and six other prefectures under a government-declared state of emergency are slated to be the first recipients of the masks.
In addition to this effort, masks are also being provided to school-aged children, nursing and care homes and pregnant women.
The distribution of the masks is part of an emergency economic stimulus package the government adopted earlier this month and 46.6 billion yen was allocated to the endeavor.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
