For Haines businesses that require customers to wear masks, the cost of supplying personal protective equipment (PPE) is adding up.
A little over two weeks ago, Mountain Market owner Mary Jean Sebens decided to require masks for customers entering the store and began offering masks free of charge for those without their own.
“We thought, if we’re going to require it, if someone doesn’t have a mask, we want to provide the opportunity for that person to still come in the store,” Sebens said.
Since then, she estimates the store has gone through a box a day of the blue surgical masks, which costs $30 and contain 50 masks.
Sebens said the business has spent $600 on masks in the two weeks since the change in policy. At that rate, the store will end up spending roughly $900 a month to supply customers with 1,500 masks.
“(The cost) is significant,” Sebens said, “especially in a down economy with cafe sales cut in half because of COVID-19, and no events or tourists.”
Lutak Lumber owner Chip Lende reported similar costs associated with supplying masks.
“The masks cost about a buck each,” Lende said. “We go through a box of 100 every two days.”
Lutak Lumber has been supplying masks for customers since April when Lende began requiring masks to enter. At a rate of 50 masks a day, the business has likely spent at least $6,000 on masks to date.
Other businesses have seen more modest mask use.
“We burned through a box in a day the first day we were open,” First National Bank Alaska branch manager Wendell Harren said. “The rate has slowed down as people have become aware of our policy.”
The bank began requiring masks July 27. Since then, it has used roughly 250 masks, Harren estimates.
Lende said he thinks the Haines Borough should be using more of its federal coronavirus relief dollars to defray the cost of PPE for businesses.
In August, the Haines Borough set aside $50,000 in CARES Act funds to help businesses with PPE purchases. The borough has been distributing the funds with the help of the Chamber of Commerce and the Haines Economic Development Corporation (HEDC) in the form of PPE care packages containing items including masks and disinfectants.
Sebens said she recently collected a PPE care package from HEDC. It contained a box of the blue masks, a drop in the bucket for businesses that are going through one of these a day.
“In general, it’s just a cost we’re taking on,” Sebens said, “and I recognize that it’s a choice.”
Haines Borough Emergency Operations Center incident commander Carolann Wooton said additional PPE support is available for businesses as needed. To date, the borough has spent $10,810 of the total $50,000 set aside for PPE.
“If a business has a specific need then they should reach out to the Chamber or to HEDC and request the item. We will do our best to fulfill the need,” Wooton said.
Sebens said she thinks a communitywide mask mandate could be another way to help defray costs for individual businesses since it would increase the saturation of masks in the community. She said she keeps thinking her customers’ rate of disposable mask use will slow down, but so far it hasn’t.
“It would be nice if people held on to their masks and came prepared, just like they bring their wallet and checkbook and bag when they go shopping,” she said.
Lende and Sebens said the decision to require masks in their businesses was significantly influenced by a desire to keep their businesses from having to shut down due to COVID-19.
“If you do get a case and your employees get infected, the likely risk is that the store would have to shut down, and the financial cost of having to shut down is terrible,” Lende said.
In late July, businesses including the Fogcutter Bar, American Legion, Port Chilkoot Distillery and Pioneer Bar temporarily closed as a precautionary measure in the wake of a July 24 coronavirus case.