New York City police officers who don't wear a mask while on duty will face 'disciplinary action'

• Police officers in New York City are now required to wear masks while working, according to a memo.
• NYPD officers who skirt this new rule will face "disciplinary action," the memo, obtained by Insider, said.
• The decision comes after numerous complaints from members of the public and lawmakers accusing NYPD officers of not wearing masks while on duty.

New York City police officers will face "disciplinary action" if they don't wear a mask in public, according to a memo obtained by Insider.

NYPD officers "are required to wear face coverings at all times when performing duties in public areas and Department facilities and whenever social distancing is not possible," a memo sent out Friday to all members of the police department said.

The memo specifies that officers need not wear a mask if they are eating or drinking but must wear one at all other times while on duty.

Any officer's failure to comply with the newly enforced mask mandate "will result in disciplinary action," the memo said. To enforce the decision and ensure officers are complying, supervisors will monitor their subordinates.

The memo was issued by the NYPD's Personnel and Human Resources Division, according to the New York Post, which first reported the story.

The mask requirement comes after mounting pressure from members of the public, who have complained about officers frequently going mask-less while on duty.

Numerous reports circulating across social media and local news outlets include photos showing cops without masks patrolling different parts of the city.

"Wearing a mask is the law," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in a press briefing last month. "But the police officer who's supposed to enforce the law doesn't wear a mask."

In June, the NYPD shrugged off concerns, saying its members "can put our energy to a better use" than wearing masks.

Individual officers have also dismissed the directive.

When a New York City subway rider confronted two police officers for not wearing a mask, one of them called the subway rider a "male version of Karen," according to a recording of the incident.

"You're the person who calls someone when someone's selling a water bottle on the streets. You're the person who calls them. Alright, Karen. You're the male version of Karen," the officer could be heard saying in the video.

Health officials in the past have said that wearing a mask could help curb the spread of the coronavirus quicker.

"The data is clearly there that masking works," Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield said in July. "If we can get everybody to wear a mask right now, I really do think in the next four, six, eight weeks ... we can get this epidemic under control."

Last week, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said safety measures such as wearing a mask will persist deep into 2021.

"A combination of an effective vaccine and adherence to certain public-health principles will get us to the point where we want to be, by the end of 2021," Fauci said.

The coronavirus has infected more than 7.3 million people in the United States, according to the latest data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Of that figure, more than 208,000 people have died from it.

New York state, once regarded as a coronavirus hotspot, has seen more than 33,000 people die from the disease, according to JHU data.