Costco Is Ending This Member Perk Soon

It's been over two years since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Costco is ending one of the safety rules it put into place to help keep members and employees safe. After making the announcement in mid-March, Costco is close to officially doing away with the special shopping hour, according to its website. The company will return to normal business operations on Monday, April 18.

The warehouse chain started holding special shopping hours in March 2020 to help those the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) considered most at-risk for COVID-19 at the time. Since July 2021, most clubs have held the hours from 9 to 10 a.m. Tuesday and Thursday.

Originally, the hours were created for first responders, seniors, those with disabilities, and those who are too immunocompromised to shop in the warehouse without crowds. Many of the nation's groceries stores around the country had enacted similar senior hours to allow more vulnerable populations to shop in-store. As cases have fallen, stores are revaluating their COVID-19 precautions.

The decision to remove the special operating hours has been met with some contest. In the Summer of 2020, Costco announced that the special hour would switch to two days a week from five, but reversed the decision a few weeks later as COVID-19 cases rose. A year later in July, the chain announced it was getting rid of the perk altogether, only to backtrack once again later in the month because of the pandemic cases again. With COVID-19 cases stable and the ending date approaching, this appears to be Costco's final decision.

While Costco's store hours will go back to normal, the warehouse will still have policies regarding masks and item limits. According to its website, Costco locations will follow the face mask regulations according to local policies.

While Costco is changing this member perk, check out these items that will never rise in price.