July 22, 2020
Seacoastonline.com
PORTSMOUTH – As part of a collaborative statewide effort to limit the spread of COVID-19 and keep New Hampshire healthy, Seacoast Mental Health Center is partnering with businesses and organizations on a grassroots movement to encourage the use of face masks in public and work settings.
#MaskUpNewHampshire aims to strengthen the efforts led by the Common Man family and the Rotary Clubs of New Hampshire by helping raise awareness around the importance of wearing masks, and how doing so along with other measures like hand washing, social distancing and staying home when sick, can reduce the spread of COVID-19.
While there is still much to learn about COVID-19 and its transmission, wearing a mask is one of the most simple and effective things that can keep the virus from spreading.
“Mental health and physical health are intricately connected, and we support initiatives which support overall public health,” said SMHC President and CEO Jay Couture. “We must all remain vigilant and continue taking steps to mitigate the spread of the virus to protect each other and our loved ones. There is only one way we will get through this – together.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and N.H. Department of Health & Human Services recommend cloth face coverings when in public to limit the spread of COVID-19. According to a recent study from global investment firm Goldman Sachs, mask-wearing by every American could save the U.S. economy from a 5% drop in GDP, or approximately $1 trillion in reduced economic spending.
For more information or to participate in the initiative, visit maskupnewhampshire.com or email Rebecca Throop, vice president, community relations at SMHC, at rthroop@smhc-nh.org.