Mask-wearing recommended

Face coverings Recommended.

Lincoln Volunteer Ambulance President Aaron Birkholz recommends using some type of mask or face covering during the upcoming holiday weekend to help prevent potential spread of COVID-19.

“I would recommend people who are here on the Fourth to wear a mask,” Birkholz said. “It would be a real shame if all a sudden we get a spike from the Lincoln parade and rodeo.”

He recommends people use something to cover their nose and mouth while interacting with others, even if it’s a basic bandana.

“Really all you’re doing is preventing your saliva from going out. You’re not protecting anything from coming in,” he said, adding that limiting the spread of those droplets helps stop the main vector for transmitting the disease, particularly for people who may be asymptomatic carriers.

While N-95 masks may not be necessary for normal, brief face-to-face encounters, Birkholz does recommend them for the elderly or anyone else who may be compromised. “Anybody who is high risk: elderly, obese or has underlying causes such as diabetes. Those are the ones we’re seeing who are dying from this, or having a really hard time. If you’re young and heathy, just put something over your face.