LeadingAge Georgia is urging Gov. Brian Kemp to mandate masks to more quickly reduce the spread of COVID-19 so family visits can resume.
In a letter to the governor, LeadingAge Georgia President Ginny Helms said that although she is grateful for the positive coronavirus trends in the state, “older adults have been sheltering in place now for over five months” and the state has a long way to go in reducing community spread and allowing resident to safely visit with family members.
“I can’t emphasize enough how much residents and their families miss each other,” Helms wrote. “The residents in long-term care universally feel lonely and isolated.”
Senior living communities, she said, are working to facilitate safe outdoor visits and prepare for future indoor visits, but “as long as the coronavirus community spread is problematic, asymptomatic families will likely bring the coronavirus into our communities.
“Our board members feel that community spread of the coronavirus will not be managed until masks are worn universally,” Helms wrote. “Our board, comprised of leaders of many of the large, faith-based long-term care communities, asks that you adhere to the recommendation of the White House Coronavirus Task Force and mandate masks in public in order to reduce the community spread of the coronavirus.”
Kemp so far has refused to issue a statewide mask mandate but has encouraged everyone to wear a mask and social distance. He recently allowed local governments to pass their own mask ordinances.
