Blog

Sep 8th Webinar Recording

Watch the Sep 8th Q&A Recording from Brace for C19 Wave 2023 with MaskTogetherAmerica Town Hall Virtual Gathering

To help everyone stay informed about the new C19 surge in the U.S., MaskTogetherAmerica started a Webinar series. Our September 8th webinar featured Dr. Kaitlin Sundling, a physician, scientist, and pathologist from Madison, Wisconsin, Dr. Jon Levy, Professor and Chair of the Department of Environmental Health at Boston University School of Public Health and Michael Bailey, founder of Indoor Air Care Advocates from Alabama.

Click to watch the Sep 8th Webinar

Watch the Webinar

Manifesto of MaskTogetherAmerica

“You’re not alone. We are in this together.”

Members of our advocacy group made this promise in April 2020. MaskTogetherAmerica is committed to supporting public health through raising awareness by amplifying individual voices through images and writing.

Our grassroots campaign has over 10K followers, reaching over 100,000 social media users per month. Because of our followers, we reach every state, even other countries including Canada, Japan, U.K. and India.

We use our platforms on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to share published articles about preventable diseases because life-saving info about preventive measures shouldn’t require subscriptions.

Though COVID-19, RSV, Flu, TB and many other respiratory infections are preventable, we are losing precious lives daily. Countless people are suffering due to post-viral issues including Long Covid. People need to know the truth.

The COVID-19 pandemic isn’t over for ~200 million high-risk Americans. More than ever, the absence of preventive protocols in public spaces makes COVID-19 an emergency to the elderly and spoonies, especially those who are immunocompromised.

“If I can’t do great things, I can do small things in a great way.” Dr. King said. We are inspired by this human-rights leader. Join our movement. Raise awareness. People can’t be forced. They need strong reasons to take action. Let’s promote the layered approach in sickness prevention through education.

Stay #COVIDSMART

Isolate when testing

Wear N95s together

Disinfect frequently-touched surfaces

Clean hands regularly

Open windows

Air purifiers + HEPA filters

Test and report to Make My Test Count

Get Vaccinated

2nd Bivalent (65+ or Immunocompromised)

To volunteer, send a masked-selfie with a note to [email protected]. Let’s normalize prevention, not infection.

Please take action with us: When you sign the petition, please leave a comment for a book we are making. We will share everyone’s signatures and comments with elected officials.

Sign the Petition

MaskTogetherAmerica Expert Forum II on YouTube

Watch April 12, 2023 MaskTogetherAmerica Expert Forum II to Discuss Outcomes of Ending C19 Emergency Declarations - Q&A - featuring Dr. Dhavel Desai, MD Dr. Jonathan Levy Dr. Camille Clare, MD, MPH Dr. Angelique Corthals Introduction by Julie Lam, Founder of MaskTogetherAmerica. Moderated by Sarah Cahill, Coordinator of MaskTogetherAmerica.

The lively discussion shows that we need to track the virus, follow science, use all the mitigation tools, continue to find better solutions, raise awareness and prepare our country for surges in the future because the virus is not done with us. Ending Emergency Declarations prematurely will break the entire pandemic safety net. If people must pay for tests and treatments, many simply won't. People at high risk will be greatly endangered. We cannot tolerate cutting funding for research, virus surveillance, preventive measures and treatment in a country where healthcare isn't free for all.

Please take action with us: When you sign the petition, please leave a comment for a book we are making. We will share everyone’s signatures and comments with elected officials.

Sign the Petition

MaskTogetherAmerica PROPOSES “SICKNESS PREVENTION” EDUCATION CAMPAIGN TO SENATORS

Health advocacy group travels to Washington, DC to plead with Government officials to help prevent another upsurge of COVID-19 and support the marginalized high-risk community.

Washington, DC – Members from MaskTogetherAmerica, a public health advocacy group, traveled April 27, to speak on behalf of countless Americans, about the rippling effects about to happen due to the ending of the COVID-19 emergency declarations.

The MaskTogetherAmerica team, led by founder Julie Lam, initiated meetings with government officials to propose a “Sickness Prevention” education campaign, similar to the very successful Tips From Former Smokers campaign launched in 2012. MaskTogetherAmerica’s mission is to educate the public to understand how to prevent another surge so there will be no need for mandates and lockdowns.

Senator Tammy Duckworth, Senator Ed Markey and Senator Chris Van Hollen’s offices met with members and advisors of the group to listen to the “Sickness Prevention” proposal, a multi-language campaign that would help normalize a layered approach to mitigations. The campaign would help the public visualize the debilitating symptoms of Long Covid and explain why mask wearing, isolating the sick, using purifiers to help reduce the viral load in the air, and promote testing and reporting cases is so vital.

“Public health experts have warned that Long Covid is a mass disabling event. If proper precautions are not taken, our country’s workforce could be affected by mass disability for the next 10 to 20 years,” Lam explained to the health policy fellows of each of the Senators’ offices.

The trip to Washington, DC and the genesis of the “Sickness Prevention” education campaign was spurred on by a petition launched on MaskTogetherAmerica’s social media platforms on February 4, 2023. The petition, co-sponsored by a Marked by COVID, a nonprofit grassroots organization leading the national movement for pandemic justice and remembrance, has garnered over 5,400 signatures and a flood of impassioned comments.

“A Covid infection, mild or not, increases the severity of diabetes, vascular and cardiac diseases, autoimmune diseases and other infectious diseases, including bacterial, viral and fungal. We have to do more,” Lam said. “An effective ‘Sickness Prevention’ campaign would be the catalyst to bringing an end to passing sickness to colleagues, friends and family.”

Nearly 200 million adults in the U.S. have one or more comorbidities that put them at high risk of severe sickness or developing long term health issues from an infection of SARS-CoV-2.

“It’s heartbreaking to see our public health agencies ignoring the health threat,” Lam said. “We can make a difference if we work together. I urge everyone to write to your Senators and Representatives asking them to support the “Sickness Prevention” education campaign. When we come together, they can’t ignore us.”

Please take action with us: When you sign the petition, please leave a comment for a book we are making. We will share everyone’s signatures and comments with elected officials.

Sign the Petition

MaskTogetherAmerica Expert Forum I

Thank you to all who attended our Expert Forum event on March 10, 2023.

Our first Mask Together America Expert Foruma was a success watch the replay HERE!

We discussed some predictable outcomes of ending COVID-19 Emergency Declarations—featuring Dr. Helen Pesola, Dr. Robi R. Tamargo, PsyD, Dr. Angelique Corthals, moderated by Sarah Cahill.

Our experts’ presentations made clear that we need to track the virus, follow science, use all the mitigation tools, continue to find better solutions, raise awareness and prepare our country for surges in the future because the virus is not done with our planet. We wish it was.

We heard from Dr. Helen Pesola on how ending the emergency will mean uninsured Americans who have had access to free COVID testing and treatments since 2020 will soon have to pay for those, and the insured may have co-pays. We also heard how prevalent and lasting Long COVID symptoms can be.

We heard from Dr. Robi Tamargo about her firsthand account of what Long COVID can do to someone previously active and fit with no underlying conditions. She described mental health symptoms nobody talks about like psychosis and significant memory loss.

We heard from Dr. Angelique Corthals on how ending the emergency would mean vital funding for research into vaccines and treatments will end.

We CAN'T allow this to happen without speaking out!

Don't forget to sign and share our petition to Oppose Ending the National and Public Health Emergency Declarations.

Watch the Video    Sign the Petition

MaskTogetherAmerica Expert Forum II

Concerned about Ending the COVID-19 Emergencies? You are not alone. MaskTogetherAmerica stands with United States residents who are marginalized in this pandemic. No one gets left behind. We cannot tolerate cutting funding for research, virus surveillance, preventive measures and treatment in a country where healthcare isn't free for all.

Join our Expert Forum II

April 12, 7:00pm EST

Featuring

Dr. Dhavel Desai, MD

Dr. Jonathan Levy

Dr. Camille Clare, MD, MPH

Dr. Yaneer Bar-Yam 

Dr. Angelique Corthals

Discussion Topics:

Outcomes of removing the emergencies

Actions we can take for both activism & personal safety

How we can help end this global health crisis

If you haven’t done it, please sign and share our petition to save the Emergency Declarations.

Join the Forum    Sign the Petition

MTA EXPERT FORUM

The pandemic is not over in the U.S. We are still losing thousands of lives every week. The population of people suffering from #LongCovid is growing and exploding. May 11 is too early to terminate the national and public health emergency declarations that guarantee access to tests, shots and treatments for all.

Join MTA Expert Forum, Friday, March 10, 7:00 P.M. EST

Come chat with our speakers —

Dr. Helen Pesola Nurse Practitioner affiliated with the Department of Veterans Affairs Manhattan Campus

Dr. Angelique Corthals Associate Professor at John Jay College, affiliated with Doctors Without Borders MSF

Dr. Robi Tamargo Clinical Psychologist, specializes in trauma, consultant to the Naval Hospital Jacksonville, Florida

Discussion Topics:

Outcomes of removing the emergencies

Actions we can take for both activism & personal safety

How we can help end this global health crisis

Email us your questions and concerns.

Email Us

Mask Together America on CBS Chicago

Ending C19 emergencies, a.k.a. ending universal free access to tests, shots and treatments, endangers millions of Americans. CBS Chicago recognizes the immunocompromised community’s alarm, consulting UIC epidemiologist Dr. Katrine Wallace and MaskTogetherAmerica founder Julie Lam.

We’re grateful to Producer Mikayla Rose and Chris Tye, host of this news show for the shout-out. CBS’s recognition of our joint petition with Marked By Covid is a boost to our 3-year-long fight – please sign and share!

Please watch How ending COVID emergency declarations will impact Americans.

Please sign the petition.

Sign Here

Please Sign This Petition

Many thousands of people STILL become disabled every week from Long COVID. At least 15,000 Americans died from COVID during January 2023 alone. Clearly, this pandemic is still an emergency.

Sign our petition urging President Biden to extend the 2 pandemic emergency declarations and to promote comprehensive prevention. That will ensure continued access to COVID-19 tests, shots & treatment for everyone – and especially the most vulnerable people.

Sign Here

~100 million people in the U.S. are at risk of severe outcomes from COVID-19 in the U.S. today!

We invite you to sign this Joint Petition Urgently Requesting Indoor Mask Requirement to Protect the Most Vulnerable Among Us

Sign here

Mask Together America: A Call to Activism

Artist and public health activist Julie Lam returns to the How Now? Podcast to share her COVID experience and to talk about her continued efforts to promote mask awareness as new variants of COVID continue to emerge. How Now? Podcast with Kim Martin-Raymond features guests from all walks of life to express their emotions and experience during the pandemic. It’s a wonderful platform that promotes learning, understanding and empowerment during this troubling time.

Watch the show.

Julie invites you to read her personal COVID story published in New York Voice on Medium: Abandoning Masks Puts >100 million Americans at Risk of Severe Illness or Death. Me included.

“I suck at this. When I get nervous, I can’t speak. But this is not the time to hold back. We are universally sick and tired of our broken healthcare system in the U.S. You can’t get sick if you are unemployed, uninsured or underinsured. You can’t stay home without paid sick leaves. Our public policies do not care about people who are immunocompromised due to fighting chronic illnesses. It’s up to us now. Protect the marginalized community that is vulnerable to severe outcomes from COVID-19 infection and reinfection and Long COVID. Share your mask selfies and stories with #masktogetheramerica. Please join us.”

Julie Lam founded MaskTogetherAmerica.org. The social media campaign was launched in May, 2020, with Julie taking masked portraits and sharing her street photography, as part of an advocacy community that has been tirelessly supporting the frontline.

Abandoning masks literally means putting 100 million people at risk of severe illness or death

Please co-sign a letter we wrote for policymakers.

COVID-19 has been among the top three causes of death in the United States for most of the last two years. If rushing to normalcy means killing and sickening millions of people, that's not normal at all. Destigmatize and normalize mask-use will save millions of lives. We need to minimize the threat of serious adverse outcomes for a huge group of people. Abandoning masks literally means putting 100 million people at risk of severe illness or death. Please co-sign a letter we wrote for policymakers.

Here is a link to facts on COVID-19 death.

View Facts