MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Miami Beach is issuing an order: cover up. Effective Tuesday, April 7, employees and customers must wear some kind of covering over their mouths and noses when they go into grocery stores, pharmacies and restaurants in the city.

The city added this requirement to its Emergency Order Friday.

The same requirement applies to people who are providing food and drugstore delivery services.

Acceptable coverings may include a face mask, homemade mask or other cloth covering, such as a scarf, bandana or handkerchief, and should complement — not substitute for — social distancing practices. Medical and surgical face masks, such as “N95” masks, are in short supply and should be reserved for health care personnel and other first responders with the greatest need for such personal protective equipment.

The order went on to say: "As to all other essential retail and commercial establishments permitted to remain open, employees and customers are strongly encouraged to wear a form of covering over their nose and mouth. All establishments are strongly encouraged to implement policies for employees to use other personal protective equipment, such as gloves, subject to the availability of such items.

The city said it has also revised its “Safer at Home” Emergency Order through April 9, 2020.

For all emergency measures being enforced in Miami Beach, visit www.MiamiBeachFl.gov/coronavirus.

On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “recommended” that people should wear cloth face masks in public areas where social distancing measures are difficult to maintain, such as grocery stores and pharmacies.

The CDC stated it was basing its recommendation on results from recent studies that show the coronavirus can be spread between people interacting in close proximity to one another even if those people are not exhibiting symptoms. T

To view the CDC’s recommendation on face coverings, visit https://bit.ly/cdconmasks.