CHICAGO—Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot and the McDonald’s Corporation today announced a new donation of 750,000 N95 face masks to support healthcare professionals and personnel as well as first responders aiding in the citywide response to the COVID-19 global pandemic. The City of Chicago will add these masks into its repository and determine where allocations are needed as part of its ongoing efforts to coordinate and provide personal protective equipment (PPE) for first responders and healthcare workers.

This donation is in response to the City’s call for volunteers and donations to support a robust response to combat COVID-19. The City continues to seek PPE and other supplies that have become scarce, as well as volunteers to help those on the front lines and to prevent the further spread of the outbreak.

“The health and safety of all residents, and in particular our healthcare workers and first responders on the frontlines, remains the City’s top priority as we continue responding to the COVID-19 public health crisis,” said Mayor Lightfoot. “I want to thank McDonald’s Corporation for heeding the call to donate supplies and helping us protect workers with the highest exposure to this virus. We are thankful and proud to have a hometown hero like McDonald’s as our partner during this time.”

McDonald’s will also donate 250,000 masks directly to the State of Illinois, bringing the total donation to 1 million N95 masks for healthcare professionals and first responders across the state. While the company has been working with suppliers worldwide to procure non-medical grade masks to protect restaurant employees, it was able to purchase the large stock of masks and immediately sourced them for its hometown city. The City will determine a delivery plan to address locations where the greatest needs for masks currently exists.

“Our company has a deep bond with the City of Chicago and the State of Illinois, and we feel a profound sense of gratitude for the healthcare workers and first responders serving our community. While sourcing supplies for our restaurant crew, we were fortunate to have come across these critical items so we can get them into the hands of people who need them,” said Michael Gonda, Vice President of Global Corporate Relations at McDonald’s. 

The Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) works to prioritize allocations of supplies for first responders and healthcare workers on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Chicago’s 29 area hospitals. As PPE arrives, CDPH immediately validates quality, takes stock of inventory, and distributes the PPE.   

In one two-week period, CDPH distributed over 70 pallets of PPE equipment or a total of over 1 million individual pieces of PPE to hospitals and medical facilities around Chicago. These pallets of PPE included face shields, gloves, gowns, hand sanitizer, surgical masks, N95 respirators and other critical medical supplies. 

Supporting its efforts to maintain supplies, the City of Chicago has also received many donations of personal protective equipment (PPE) and other supplies that support the work of city public health personnel, hospital personnel, and first responders. Last Friday, the Mayor joined the Chicago Police Department in thanking a number of donors for their contributions during the month of March which yielded more than 100,000 masks, more than 100,000 gloves, 50,000 hand sanitizers and additional PPE for Chicago’s first responders across police districts.

McDonald’s donation to Chicago comes after the corporation donated $1 million and 400,000 KF94 masks to the State of Illinois’ COVID-19 fund. Worldwide, McDonald’s China RMB donated $1 million to support healthcare workers and McDonald’s Italy and Ronald McDonald House Charities Italy €1 million donation to construct a temporary hospital in Milan. For more information about McDonald’s support during the COVID-19 crisis, and to stay up to date with the latest announcements visit the McDonald’s Newsroom.

The City of Chicago encourages companies seeking to donate supplies or PPE, and residents seeking to volunteer to support the citywide response to COVID-19, to visit Chicago.gov/coronavirus.  You can also get real-time updates on COVID-19 by texting COVID19 to 78015 or by tuning into “Ask Dr. Arwady,” to submit questions during a daily Facebook Live show.

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