This letter is targeted toward the state of CA and the County Health Departments across the state.

ACE (Action for Care & Equity), a community-led coalition that's building collective power to protect every member of our communities, is demanding that mask requirements be reinstated in healthcare settings immediately across California. Ever since the premature end of the federal public health emergency, counties across California have dropped the requirement for masking in healthcare settings leaving patients and workers vulnerable to infections and reinfections of SARS-2 resulting in disability from long covid and death.

Every patient in a healthcare setting is already vulnerable and should be protected from this preventable disease during this ongoing airborne pandemic. Additionally, our healthcare workers are being put at greater risk of reinfections, disability, and death as we are already experiencing a worker shortage in our healthcare system and an impending healthcare collapse.

While some counties are expected to bring mask requirements back to healthcare settings as we get closer to winter (per counties due to "respiratory season"), this is not soon enough as people are getting infected and reinfected in large numbers daily and these numbers are growing exponentially. Moreover, mask requirements in healthcare settings will help immediately against the ongoing airborne SARS-2 pandemic as well as flu and RSV. Patients and workers need airborne protections in healthcare settings immediately.

We are organizing across the state to protect the lives of our loved ones and our communities. Bring back mask requirements In healthcare immediately.

Please find more information at ActionCareEquity.org