(WFRV) – One month into 2022 – the State of Wisconsin, Governor Tony Evers, and the Department of Health Services have announced a milestone in distributing PPE throughout the state.

According to Governor Evers, the state has distributed more than 5.4 million pieces of personal protective equipment since the beginning of the year. As coronavirus cases surge, 5.4 million masks have been distributed over 130 locations including 533,000 to school districts.

“Keeping Wisconsinites healthy and safe continues to be my top priority as the landscape of this pandemic continues to shift and evolve,” said Gov. Evers. “In addition to getting vaccine shots in arms and expanding our COVID-19 testing efforts, ensuring that folks have access to high-quality masks and respirators is key to helping keep people safe and preventing the spread of COVID-19 while ensuring our kids continue learning in the classroom, our small businesses and main streets recover, and our workers to stay on the job.”

The masks have been distributed from the DHS Medical Stockpile, which is a state-owned cache of medical surge supplies and PPE. Healthcare providers, local and tribal health departments, and schools who are interested in requesting masks from the stockpile can visit this link.

As the guidance from the CDC regarding masking and the type of masks that are recommended changes, Wisconsinites can find N95 and KN95 masks through reputable sellers. The Biden Administration also announced plans to make 400 million N95 masks to be made available for free at pharmacies and health centers.