Chicago police officers will be required to wear protective face masks and gloves to prevent the spread of the coronavirus effective midnight on Friday.
Chicago Police Department First Deputy Superintendent Anthony Riccio detailed the order in a memo sent out on Thursday evening.
“All on-duty personnel are required to wear Department issued surgical masks and gloves except for when members are inside of a police facility or department vehicle,” the memo reads.
Commanders have been instructed to make sure each district and unit has enough supplies to carry out the order.
The memo comes the evening prior to when Illinois’ modified stay-at-home order is set to take place.
One of those modifications requires able residents over the age of two to wear protective face coverings or masks when unable to keep a six-foot distance in public to help curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
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Pritzker said police should remind people who aren't wearing a mask of the order and all businesses must require people to have one in order to enter.
"People should wear a mask and it should be they should be reminded if they're not wearing a mask that they're not," he said. "And private establishments do need to require that people who enter their establishment wear a mask."
Pritzker noted that any enforcement will be done on a local level.
"We're not encouraging police officers to stop people and arrest them, or you know, take drastic action," Pritzker said.
