As of Wednesday, July 1, shoppers at any H-E-B in Texas will have to wear a face mask to enter one of the grocer’s more than 340 stores. The San Antonio-based company also announced it would again limit sales of certain items, including bath tissue, brisket, Pepcid, frozen food, and more (see below). The stores in Nueces County already require masks as per an order by County Judge Barbara Canales about a week ago. Gov. Greg Abbott has allowed local leaders to make their own decisions about mandatory mask orders; however, he stopped short of issuing a statewide order. Nevertheless, H-E-B has decided that even in locations where masks are not mandatory it will require customers to wear the protection against the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19. The number of COVID-19 patients has been rapidly increasing across the state. The state reported 7,000 new cases on Tuesday, June 30, a new record high. With COVID-19 numbers continuing to spike, H-E-B officials decided it was time to begin preparing for another onslaught of panic shopping, which hit stores in March, resulting in empty shelves. The following products have been limited to two items per customer:
- brisket
- bath tissue
- paper towels
- acetaminophen, including baby, trial, and travel sizes
- H-E-B Acid Controller/Famotidine, smaller than 50 count
- disinfecting and antibacterial sprays
- disinfecting and antibacterial wipes
- trial- and travel-size disinfecting and antibacterial sprays/wipes
- hydrogen peroxide
- rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol/swabs
- first aid and cleaning gloves
H-E-B Acid Controller/Famotidine, 50 count and larger, is limited to one item per customer. Hand soap is limited to four items, while hand sanitizer is limited to 10. The following items will not be accepted for returns:
- paper towels
- bath tissue
- thermometers
- analgesics
- disinfecting sprays
- disinfecting wipes
- frozen food
- liquid/bar soap
- hand sanitizer
- cold/allergy/sinus medications
- vitamins/supplements
- laundry detergent