USPS: No evidence coronavirus can spread through mail

When you open your mailbox, you might not know what you’ll find inside.

But both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization report that the risk of catching the coronavirus from mail or packages that have been shipped and moved is low.

The United States Postal Service, which echoed the CDC and WHO's sentiments, said it provides an essential service during this time, bringing people their medications, online purchases, and checks, including those from Social Security and, soon, the federal stimulus package.

Nicole Hill, the acting strategic communications specialist for Northland & Hawkeye District of USPS, said all postal service mail carriers and clerks have masks and hand sanitizer or sanitizing wipes that they use on the job.

USPS has also increased its cleaning at post offices and put in more measures to keep workers and customers healthy, according to Hill.

"Most of our locations have markings on the floor to let the customers know the distance between where they should be standing, so the six feet variance on the floors,” Hill said. “Most of our locations, we've also installed sneeze guards, so they're like a clear Plexiglas that's in front of our retail windows, not only for our employees' protection but also for the protection of the customers."

Hill said the postal service has seen an increase of 30% to 40% more packages recently, depending on the day, so USPS is hiring workers right now to accommodate more mail.

She added that while there aren’t any delays for local deliveries, there are some for international shipping.