To the editor:

I work at our medical clinic and I want to assure you the COVID-19 Pandemic is real. Fortunately Minnesota (and Brown County) have done a good job of trying to keep it under control.

I am concerned because recently we are having a lot of people coming into the clinic who are refusing to wear a mask. I don’t understand this. Masks help prevent the spread of the virus. We see that when people don’t wear masks, the virus spreads and people get sick (look what is happening in California and Florida).

So wearing masks in the clinic is important. It helps the person who wears the mask from getting the virus, and it helps them from spreading it. Wearing a mask protects me and the staff at the clinic, and by protecting us, it protects our families whom we go home to. It also protects the 80-year-old diabetic who comes into the clinic to see me. Everyone understands that if the elderly get the COVID virus, it could be deadly. In one study, 20% of those 80 and older who get the virus have died.

Please wear a mask in the clinic for your health and the health of others. It is not that hard to do, and it can be lifesaving. If you don’t have a mask, we will provide one. Please think of others.

Scott Rysdahl MD

New Ulm