Faced with a shortage of protective masks amid the coronavirus outbreak, the government has ordered manufacturers to release supplies to state-run or public retailers from as early as Thursday.
Mask manufacturers are required to release at least 50 percent of their daily output, or five million units, to Korea Post, Nonghyup Bank and pharmacies.
Each customer will be limited to five masks to prevent hoarding.
An additional 500,000 masks will be supplied to medical facilities and the Daegu Medical Association.
The government said a total of five million face masks will be distributed in the Daegu region over the next five days.■
<Photo: Yonhap News>
