This grocery chain in Idaho no longer requires masks for those fully vaccinated

John Sowell
·2 min read

Walk into any Fred Meyer store in Idaho and you’ll see a new sign.

Underneath the one informing customers that a face mask is required to enter the store, a smaller one in red appeared on Thursday: “Masks not required for fully vaccinated individuals.”

The change came after Kroger, the Portland retailer’s parent company, reviewed updated recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Last week, the federal agency said fully vaccinated people could resume activities without wearing a mask or socially distancing unless there were local regulations that required it or in places such as airports and on flights.

A week ago, Boise Mayor Lauren McLean lifted the requirement that people wear masks indoors and outdoors in public spaces. Businesses were given the option to continue wearing masks or make them optional.

Customers and store workers who have been fully vaccinated are no longer required to wear face masks inside Fred Meyer stores in Idaho. The change was instituted Thursday after parent company Kroger loosened its requirements following new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At the Boise store at Orchard and Franklin roads on Friday, there was a mix of customers wearing masks and others who were not.

“Fully vaccinated customers and most fully vaccinated associates no longer need to wear a mask in our facilities, including stores, distribution centers, plants, and offices, unless otherwise required by state or local jurisdiction,” a Fred Meyer spokesperson wrote Friday in an email to the Idaho Statesman.

Store workers in the pharmacy or in a health clinic will still be required to wear masks, due to the CDC’s guidance for health care settings.

“Non-vaccinated associates will be required to wear a mask and we request that non-vaccinated customers continue to wear a mask,” the spokesperson wrote.

As with other businesses, Fred Meyer is operating on the honor system — it has no way of knowing whether a maskless customer is vaccinated or not.

The head of the union that represents Kroger employees expressed concerns about the policy change. Marc Perrone, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers International, said there are still more than 200 million Americans who have not been fully vaccinated amid the continuing coronavirus pandemic.

“America’s grocery workers are still facing daily Covid risks on the front lines so that all our families can put food on the table as the pandemic continues,” Perrone wrote in a statement. “These essential frontline workers have been forced to play mask police throughout the pandemic with many shoppers not following COVID-19 safety standards. Now, they are being asked to be the vaccination police.”

Kroger is the nation’s largest grocery chain, operating nearly 2,800 stores in 35 states. The chain joined companies such as Trader Joe’s, Walmart and Costco in making masks optional.

The second-largest grocery chain, Albertsons Companies, headquartered in Boise, is still requiring customers to wear masks. Albertsons has nearly 2,300 stores.

Fred Meyer stores in Oregon are still requiring masks because of state and local regulations there.