Julie S. Lam
@MsJulieSLam
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https://t.co/8mUMQ9kQna | MaskwithUs FB Group | @TogetherWeMask (also on BLUESKY) Founder, Writer, Photographer, Mom, IgAN + Long COVID Warrior
Manhattan, NY
Joined July 2021
We need the CDC to continue to track and report COVID rates daily. We need @CDCgov to educate the public about the combined benefits of shots, masks, ventilation, tests, isolation and treatment. #immunocompromised NOT EXPENDABLE 😡
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In an elevator, a man who lives on the same floor acted horrified at my presence to make me feel alienated for wearing a mask. In response to my greeting, he stepped back and said, I don't know who you are and why you are wearing a mask! #immunocompromised was written on my mask.
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I took this selfie on 6/20, on my way home after work. This is NYC! People wear masks to protect themselves from f__king contagious SARS-CoV-2 that has killed >80,000 New Yorkers. I am heartbroken about politicians fighting for mask ban instead of better ventilation for @MTA!
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✈️@Delta flight attendant said if my @envomaskusa has a on-way valve, it’s not permitted on the flight. Meanwhile, only my husband and I #MaakUp on the flight! 🤨This N95+ elastomeric has no exhalation valve it’s closed outside and inside. Frontliners use this. I told her.
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Many @MTA riders wear masks due to poor ventilation, high levels of viral illness & pollution in NYC. We ask our officials to fight for public health, instead, @RitchieTorres is proposing a mask ban that would discriminate #immunocompromised visitors/New Yorkers. #StopMaskBans 💔
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During check-in at @Delta, a ground crew warned me about the sip valve. I haven’t flown with Delta for a couple of years because l was asked to remove my elastomeric masks that looked ‘valved’ to some flight attendants in the past. Well, I boarded without any issues today.
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My future in NYC is looking grim. Though @nycHealthy does recommend masking, the mayor kept trying to reinstate the prepandemic mask ban. CO2 levels are proxy for risk of exposure to airborne pathogens. CDC standard is 800ppm. 2396ppm average for a rush hour @MTA train is unsafe.
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I see people wearing masks everywhere in NY. Who wants to damage your immune system with nasty viruses? I skip two packed-like-sardines @MTA trains to get one that gives me a good CO2 level. 571ppm is hard to get. #MaskTogetherAmerica #SwissCheesers
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Spotted this poster today. It shows caring, wisdom and leadership. Commendable! Thank you @WeillCornell 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
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I am terrified that @NYCMayor is talking about banning masks in NYC. I am immune deficient with Long COVID and IgAN. I wear my mask to protect my organs. Please do not take away my right to stay healthy.
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3-day isolation for COVID is criminal. You can kill someone with this. My husband, asymptomatic, tested positive for 16days— his doc advised him to test negative 3 times 48hr apart before leaving isolation to protect his immunocompromised wife. We must oppose HICPAC’s proposal!.
Lisa Baum, @nynurses rep, opposes HICPAC's 3-day work exclusion period for infected healthcare staff—multiple diseases spread on a daily basis within healthcare facilities and massive numbers of workers suffer from #LongCOVID; many gave up their careers due to the health effects.
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DNC only allowed masking if necessary for people with disabilities… no wonder we don’t see masks in the crowds. Tired of mask bans, suppression & collective minimization of Airborne COVlD! I know I will get attacked for saying this but I can’t hold back! #MaskTogetherAmerica 🤬
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“I really don’t mind wearing a mask to keep you safe & comfortable.” @Uber driver Abdelkadel gladly put on a KN95 provided for him. He also let his #immunocompromised passenger roll down windows on a winter day. I was on my way to cover a #COVIDConcious event for @TogetherWeMask
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I see people wearing masks everywhere, not just in my dreams ✌️☮️💙👩🏻💻 #MaskTogetherAmerica
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Masking is about survival for an #immunocompromised individual. In a @3m Aura, I share the car & the air 🤨 with 50/50 masking passengers after a visit with a cardiologist. We need #CleanAir to reduce #COVID19 risk. CDCgov’s indoor #AirQuality standard is 800ppm. Come on @MTA 🚇
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Informed people are masking. Caring people are masking. And then the rest.
“I mask because it helps everyone!” Behind the white KF94 is Donnisa Edmonds @donnisa_ shining under the holiday lights. Donnisa posed for @MsJulieSLam at a mask-required event in #Chicago. #MaskTogetherAmerica because Masking = Love + Community Care. 💝😷
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I got my updated flu shot but not the COVlD shot. I wish I could. Everyone has a different immune system, just as everyone has a different story. #IgAN an autoimmune disorder makes me unable to take certain vaccines. Still, I am not giving up. My mask is always a reliable friend.
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They will always say no one is masking any more. Plenty of people are still taking precautions, especially when they ride the @MTA subway 🚇 #MTArider #COVIDSMART #igANwarrior
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@yannotyam @DentecSafety @TogetherWeMask @AnciraBecky @TheWHN @Survivor_Corps @Delta @PPEtoheros @AMMAunited @UniversalMaski2 @masknerd Funny you ask! He was wearing nothing, same for another flight attendant who watched him bully me. I landed now. I will write a letter. I am a writer.
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@Lisa_Wisa22 @Delta @envomaskusa @TogetherWeMask I confronted her! Look around, no one is masking and she was wearing a cloth mask. She said it protected her and never got sick again… and here I am wearing the most protective gear you can get and she said it’s not allowed if there’s an exhaust! People’s mouths are exhausts!.
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@mskathleenquinn @myrabatchelder @DentecSafety @TogetherWeMask @AnciraBecky @TheWHN @Survivor_Corps @Delta @PPEtoheros @AMMAunited @UniversalMaski2 @masknerd I nearly dropped to the floor. I explained that an ICU doctor would wear this at work. He was confused by the cases for the two-way filters. This flight attendant wasn’t masking himself and he dared to ask me to take off my first line of defense! 💔.
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G'morning, here’s a middle-aged lady with compromised immune system at Trader Joe’s shopping for cooking ingredients. Feel free to share my masked selfie. Over a million cases of COVID daily can’t be a new normal. @TogetherWeMask
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“I don’t want to get sick. So I wear a mask,” Peter, crew member of @TraderJoesUnion tells me. If everyone takes smart steps to prevent sickness, public spaces will be accessible for all people again. #iganwarrior #Immunocompromised
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Wearing a fitting stick-on N95 @WeillCornell Waiting to get MRIs for a suspected tumor on my cervical spine. Wish me luck. Hopefully the technician will mask up to keep everyone safe. #KeepMasksinHealthcare #YallMasking #StopMaskBans
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New York Anti-Mask Bill gives exemption to mask-use for health protection ONLY during a Declared PH Emergency— ignoring medical recommendation to mask up in crowded settings to avoid COVID/Flu or spreading sickness especially during a surge! Dangerous! Unacceptable! #StopMaskBans
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@luckytran @GovKathyHochul As an immunocompromised @MTA rider & frequent flyer in NY, I #MaskUp for my health and to protect others from COVID, flu and other airborne diseases. I lost 2 friends to COVID. @GovKathyHochul please make sure that you won’t hurt New York by banning a lifesaving mitigation tool!
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Dear @POTUS, Covid-19 is an emergency to me and many others. That’s why I went to DC. In front of the @WhiteHouse, my hands were clutching a book filled with words from Americans across the United States, who let me know that I am not alone in this fight🧵.
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Lots of people are wearing masks again, and looking stylish in them. 🤣Except for me! 💕 Anyway, there’s no better way…That’s how we can stop the spread. 🥰 #MaskTogetherAmerica
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Guess what my husband brought home? #covid #xbb116 from #India. ✈️ landed 6am 🕕 today. He 1st-time tested [+] w/Symptoms: Sore Throat &🥴cough. Doc informed. Case reported. Waiting for #paxlovid. #n95 doubled-up and windows-downed for me. 😷.#CovidIsNotOver @TogetherWeMask
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Behind every respirator is a hero! I am proud to be their photographer. 💗👩🏻💻.
“I wear my mask because my wife is immunosuppressed. I want to protect her and my community.” Behind the 3m Aura is @DenizCamp author of The Ultimate ( @MarvelComicsHQ ).📸 @MsJulieSLam reporting at @NY_Comic_Con for #MaskTogetherAmerica
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Heartbroken. 💔#immunocompromised are not invisible. Why did @POTUS say no one is wearing masks anymore? The pandemic is not over for us. We aren’t expendable.
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@mryoung151 @TogetherWeMask @jews4maskrights @LongCOVIDnetwk @DrJudyStone @aspcorthals @masknerd @michael_hoerger @TheWHN @VirusesImmunity @zalaly I have been holding back. I hate that I am immunocompromised. I hate that I cannot take the vaccines and be protected. I am tired of being excluded. Anti-maskers are so cruel!.
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@TogetherWeMask @aspcorthals @DrJudyStone @COVIDAdvocacyNY @PeoplesCDC @TheWHN @NYCLU @DRNY_org @jews4maskrights @michael_hoerger They don’t call people who wear masks. Discriminatory remarks made by some people in the audience, yelling out to arrest us. The CO2 level is a good evidence that ventilation is poor, unsafe during a COVID surge. Some legislators are questioning the bill but it will likely pass.
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Maskless Patients coughing in the waiting room @WeillCornell while #immunocompromised patients like me, waiting for 30min to see her ophthalmologist for her COVlD-induced sjögren’s 👁️😫 Pneumonia is spiking #KeepMasksInHealthcare please! 😭
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Just dropped my son off to return to school. I am freaking out that no one is wearing masks at the airport. The wastewater level is dangerously high, why isn’t @CDCgov telling people to mask up?
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@ibrake4ants @myrabatchelder @DentecSafety @TogetherWeMask @AnciraBecky @TheWHN @Survivor_Corps @Delta @PPEtoheros @AMMAunited @UniversalMaski2 @masknerd That includes this flight attendant who has no mask on! I need to protect my kidneys from possible infections. I am immunocompromised.
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If you don’t like wearing a mask during the day, you might someday be forced to wear one at night if you develop sleep apnea due to #longcovid. If you rather sleep peacefully, avoid getting it. I’m struggling to get used to the new me. #COVID didn’t just worsen my #igAN kidneys.
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I could feel the pause in ventilation and rising risk at takeoff - before I took the CO2 sensor out of my bag - glad that I am wearing an N95 stick-on mask on the @Delta flight home. #MaskTogetherAmerica
During check-in at @Delta, a ground crew warned me about the sip valve. I haven’t flown with Delta for a couple of years because l was asked to remove my elastomeric masks that looked ‘valved’ to some flight attendants in the past. Well, I boarded without any issues today.
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@CDCDirector Prevention is always better than cure, especially we know COVID-19 exacerbates underlying conditions & previously healthy can be disabled by Long Covid and there's no cure. Vaccines can't stop the spread. Treatments are NOT accessible to ALL. Promote masking +ventilation please?.
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NYC @MTA riders are masking up! At least 10 not counting me. One tool can prevent so many different airborne 🦠—so glad to have companies ❤️😷
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COVID is spreading. We're in another wave. It's time to normalize masking. Masking increases accessibility so people with disabilities and medical conditions can participate in public activities. We don't shut people out in the U.S. Masking is about health equity. #StopMaskBans.
Gov. Hochul is considering banning commuters from wearing face masks on mass transit, citing concerns they are being worn while people commit crimes. On #NY1OffTopic, @courtneycgross, @bcuza and @bern_hogan discuss the controversy around the proposal.
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Severe neck pain triggered by intense stress about the damn NY mask ban proposal. Waiting to get an x-ray. My @WeillCornell PCP wears an Aura N95 mask. She has a calming effect on me. #NoNYMaskBan please 🙏🏽 .#immunocompromised Not expendable 💔😖
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A question for @POTUS: what happened to the @WhiteHouse Coronavirus Task Force? Since we are still in a pandemic and facing the 2nd largest wave of infections, what is our government doing to lead the nation out of this global health emergency?.
Karine Jean-Pierre says that the Biden administration has "always been very consistent" in not pushing mask mandates on states and local governments. "That's not something that we get involved in!"
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@TogetherWeMask @DrJudyStone @sdaction1 @LongCOVIDnetwk @Pan_End_It @TheWHN @michael_hoerger @aspcorthals @CareNotCOVIDChi @Clean_Air_Club_ Lots of people mistake there’s herd immunity from COVID- you can’t achieve herd immunity with a virus mutating rapidly with massive infections and zero mitigation!.
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Leadership in healthcare does exist. Thank you @WeillCornell .#KeepMasksInHealthCare .#KeepMasksinHealthcareNY .Protect the #immunocompromised people. #CovidIsNotOver
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The last thing I should be doing is traveling by flight as COVID surges. But there are things in life that you can’t skip- like one last reunion with dad. 💔. P.S. CO2 level before taking off on @AmericanAir: 1643ppm #YallMasking?
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On behalf of the advocacy community, I share my gratitude to @DrJudyStone for writing about the devastating situation with COVID-19 rising as elected officials fighting to ban masks. I wish our gov't is fighting for paid sick leave and clean indoor air to reduce the risk instead.
New from me on #MaskBans, with thanks to @luckytran @MsJulieSLam @CervaniaNc and Donna Lieberman #Covid19
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Here we are #SaltingTheVibe ✨#YallMasking ⁉️
Mask Up, Nassau! Mask Up, NYC! Stop the spread. #StopMaskBans. Go to and ask Nassau legislators to say no to the Mask Transparency Act! Wear a fitting mask in all public indoor settings, esp. when taking @MTA, to reduce risk of infection and transmission.
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Here’s my response to @Newsday sharing a doxxing threat from an anti-masker against the high risk population during a COVID wave. I will never quit wearing my mask. Mr. Perlmutter is welcome to share my masked selfie widely which might help normalize mitigation. @TogetherWeMask
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Not masking in big crowds for days will make you sick 🤢 😱how can people not know that? @TogetherWeMask .And this clearly shows us that we must #StopMaskBans!.
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@TogetherWeMask @aspcorthals @DrJudyStone @COVIDAdvocacyNY @PeoplesCDC @TheWHN @NYCLU @DRNY_org @jews4maskrights @michael_hoerger I’m traumatized by the whole thing. I have never seen anything like this before. So much hate against people who wear masks, doesn’t matter if you are disabled. 😭💔 The ugly law passed and what happened was horrific. 😖.
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“Masking Is Mandatory Throughout the Mount Sinai Health System. Cover both your nose and mouth.” - a sign at @MountSinaiHeart shows how to properly wear a mask. With no one else wearing high filtration masks, I wait for my husband to get an echocardiogram in despair.
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First visit at @memorialsloankettering for a sheath tumor. Staff masked at request. Wish me luck 🍀 #SaltingTheVibes
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I am proud of being a photojournalist who supports the #immunocompromised community. We deserve to have a voice in this #Tripledemic. @TogetherWeMask
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RAT negative 2 days in a row. Seeing a doc for swelling throat, inability to breathe lying down, unable to sleep. Temperature 99 degrees F. Being #immunocompromised I want to be proactive, get diagnosed early, don’t want to visit ER. Glad that all the nurses are wearing masks!
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I’m grateful to the nurse at @rogosin kidney clinic who masks up to keep her #immunocompromised #igAN #LongCovid patient safe! Masking is about love: self-love and community care. 💗😷 @TogetherWeMask
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STOP Mask Ban! If this goes on in North Carolina, it can happen anywhere! @VictoriaCoble15 can’t fight alone! Sign her petition to show solidarity with all maskers. No one is expendable! 👉. @CovidActionGSO
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At O’Hare I was asked by @TSA security guards to take off my elastomeric respirator for scanning after the initial scanning set off. I explained I have kidney disease and am immunocompromised. I asked for a mask and was provided with a cloth mask. Boarding soon. Wish me luck!
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“I am #ThyroidCancer stage 3 in remission, what about you?” Micki’s eyes lit up in response to the word on my N95 at the noisy 99% maskless subway station. That’s how 2 #immunocompromised @MTA riders bonded instantly. 🧵
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@RitchieTorres @MTA @TheWHN @NYCLU @jews4maskrights @Pan_End_It @DrJudyStone @yaneerbaryam @COVIDAdvocacyNY @LongCFoundation @TogetherWeMask A mask ban is against public health. It would discourage masking and give police, business owners and security guards power to harass the marginalized communities. My med conditions are invisible. To be forced to disclose reasons for masking violates my right to patient privacy.
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Rush Hour #immunocompromised shopper in #COVID-SAFE style .💛💛2 friends in Heaven are reminding me to #StaySafe .Pandemic isn’t over for US! Wish it was!
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If a @MTA rider is sick with #COVID19, I’ll get very sick without my N95 that helps filter the viral laden air inside the packed car. I have #igAN, a rare autoimmune disease that affects my kidneys. Join me and support @rarediseaseday on 3/28 #igANWarrior @IGANFoundation 🧵
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Today, I need to find courage to speak from my heart ♥️, with all of you in my mind. Thank you for being my friend. - Julie @LCDCmarch15 .(Tested negative twice and always masking to keep everyone safe.). #LongCovidAwarenesDay
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In the mood for snapper with tomatoes 🍅I went to Citarella for fresh ingredients—glad to see other shoppers in respirators. I guess SARS-CoV-2 is telling people to #MaskTogetherAmerica.
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“We’re grateful to our docs & nurses. It’s smart to #KeepMasksinHealthcare 😷Who wants to get sick? We will wear our masks to keep you safe. We know you will do the same for us.”My Mom & Dad (both bivalent-boosted 2X) holding a sign to wish all #FrontlineHeroes #HappyMothersDay
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In an @Uber after my 5th visits at Queens Hospital @NYCHealthSystem for a medicine trial. The driver listened and put on an N95 to protect his #immunocompromised passenger.
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@JoyKarley @Delta @TogetherWeMask “They might not let you board because masks are not allowed to have valves.” I was so shaken up by the righteousness in this person’s voice. Instead of telling me to enjoy the flight in a welcoming manner!.
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@rileyavron @AmericanAir I was told the same thing! What is the logic behind dictating what mask/respirator people wear on the flight? This is basically telling people who are immunocompromised to quit traveling! This is a violation of human rights!.
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@TogetherWeMask @aspcorthals @DrJudyStone @COVIDAdvocacyNY @PeoplesCDC @TheWHN @NYCLU @DRNY_org @jews4maskrights @michael_hoerger We are waiting. They have not called on any one who opposes the mask ban yet. Among us are people who are disabled and immunocompromised.
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@CKKellyMartin @TogetherWeMask @jews4maskrights @LongCOVIDnetwk @DrJudyStone @aspcorthals @masknerd @michael_hoerger @TheWHN @VirusesImmunity @zalaly I did the same. I said calmly that I am immunocompromised. Then he repeated what he said again and even louder. I don't know who you are. I can't see your face. saying things I have heard pro-mask banning people have said. I am horrified that he's my neighbor.
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I love being a photographer of masked heroes and getting thumbs-up! 👍.
“Staying safe and keeping others safe, always!” Behind the KN95 respirator is Hector Beauchamp from @LatinoSports giving a thumbs-up👍 to #MaskTogetherAmerica.📸 @MsJulieSLam reporting at @NY_Comic_Con
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@TogetherWeMask @DrJudyStone @sdaction1 @LongCOVIDnetwk @Pan_End_It @TheWHN @michael_hoerger @aspcorthals @CareNotCOVIDChi @Clean_Air_Club_ I cannot believe that someone needs to ask if they can wear a mask at the DNC 2024. Something is terribly wrong with the writer who put this section together. We all wish that COVID was over but wastewater is showing HIGH LEVELS everywhere. Source:
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The CDC’s indoor #airquality is 800ppm. Safety first. Wish me luck 🍀 . Flying @americanair in an @envomaskusa elastomeric respirator. Looking forward to taking some aerial shots of #newyork and #chicago. 💕😷
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Rush hour @MTA commuter, not masking alone. CO2 level in a moderately crowded train warrants precautions. I don’t want to get COVID and hurt my organs.
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Test to Treat program ending April 16, 2024? Why? @POTUS What will happen to the uninsured, & people on Medicaid and Medicare, Indian Health Service or VA coverage who have enrolled themselves to get needed care and diagnostic tools? Is there another program they can switch to?
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It feels like we are being forced to get COVID now. It's getting insane. I don't like 2024! We are heading for disaster. @TogetherWeMask.
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@ChristinaAuria @myrabatchelder @DentecSafety @TogetherWeMask @AnciraBecky @TheWHN @Survivor_Corps @Delta @PPEtoheros @AMMAunited @UniversalMaski2 @masknerd My flight was 2 hours. But I have been wearing my respirator since 11:00 am, since riding the Uber to the airport. I am in an Uber to the hotel. I don’t have any problem with breathing at all. My face and my lungs are happy. I don’t like wearing disposable n95 for long flights.
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Matching bib, KN95 & cup, just a coincidence. Giving a 👍 because my hygienist switched to the 3m Aura I brought her ➕ there’s an air purifier in every room at my dentist’s office. I called ahead to inform them of my 2 autoimmune conditions that make me #immunocompromised.
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Y'all masking on the @MTA subways? #YallMasking.
Why I up the mask game in NY? .🔺COVID rising.🔺 Kp3, LB1 spreading fast. 🔺@MTA workers lost COVlD sick leave .🔺Ventilation in trains are embarrassingly ineffective.🔺3084ppm CO2 level greatly ⬆️ risk for 🦠transmission .🔺I 💗 myself, my family and community .🔺#igAN +sjögren
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A National COVID Inquiry is needed in the U.S. We need to find out why our country's pandemic response is failing us. More than 13 studies are showing COVD damages the immune system. Biden's former COVID advisor should know. 😡.
There's a lot of bad information out there about how covid damages the immune system. It really doesn’t. But you know what does?. Measles. And thanks to the antivaxers. We are seeing measles outbreaks again. Encourage people to get their kids vaccinated. It’s really important.
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Taking a ✈️ @AlaskaAir to see dad, wearing aura, with a @SIPmask sip valve to stay hydrated. I hope it’s not the last time. I hate that he kept saying that. IAQ before take-off: 1708ppm. Wish me luck 🍀
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The reps, even some customers put on their #Masks when I walked into 3 eyewear stores. I wrote #immunocompromised on my @DemeTech n95 to avoid getting bullied and I was surprised by the kindness I received instead. I can’t decide which pair to order, help please #IGANephropathy🫅🏽
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