AHF Proudly Backs Sen. Sanders’ ‘Masks for All Act’

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) today wholeheartedly endorsed the “Masks for All Act of 2020,” which U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (D-Vermont) introduced this week in the U.S. Senate.

The Masks for All Act of 2020 would require the U.S. federal government to use all available authorities, including the Defense Production Act, to eliminate all shortages of face masks, surgical masks, and N-95 respirators and distribute masks to the public as soon as possible. The legislation was recently announced in a joint CNN op-ed by Senator Sanders and Andy Slavitt, former Acting Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) under President Obama.

U.S. Representatives Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), Lori Trahan (D-Mass.), and Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) will lead the legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives. Under the Masks for All Act, every person in the United States – including individuals who are experiencing homelessness or living in congregate settings such as prisons, shelters, and assisted living facilities – would receive a package of three high quality, reusable face masks, free of charge. Individuals would also be able to pick up free masks at convenient locations in their communities such as post offices, pharmacies, and COVID-19 testing sites. Finally, the bill would provide needed surgical masks and N-95 respirators to all workers in health settings.

“AHF is proud to support this simple and brilliant proposal to stop the spread of the coronavirus,” said Tom Myers, chief of public affairs and general counsel for AHF. “We know from the early days of the HIV response that scientifically proven prevention interventions make a lot of sense. We hope the Congress will swiftly approve this proposal so everyone in the U.S. has a mask that breaks the transmission of this dangerous virus.”

About AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS organization, currently provides medical care and/or services to over 1.4 million people in 45 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific Region and Eastern Europe. To learn more about AHF, please visit our website: www.aidshealth.org, find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/aidshealth and follow us on Twitter: @aidshealthcare and Instagram: @aidshealthcare.