PHIT Coalition
PHIT Coalition July 22, 2020 The Honorable Mitch McConnell The Honorable Chuck Schumer Senate Majority Leader Senate Democratic Leader United States Senate United States Senate Washington, DC 20510 Washington, DC 20510 The Honorable Nancy Pelosi The Honorable Kevin McCarthy Speaker of the House Republican Leader U.S. House of Representatives U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515 Washington, DC 20515 Dear Leader McConnell, Speaker Pelosi, Leader Schumer and Leader McCarthy: Thank you for your tireless efforts targeted at the COVID-19 health care crisis. As you strive to further stimulate the U.S. economy, we want to call your attention to an important bipartisan and widely supported effort aimed at promoting physical fitness as a form of low-cost preventative health care. Since the pandemic, the fitness industry was the first to shutter its doors and continues to be repeatedly forced to close when additional coronavirus surges spike. Youth sports, health clubs, fitness studios and much of outdoor recreation were early casualties of the economic shutdown and stay-at-home orders. Under the circumstances, many of these businesses and organizations are struggling to survive in an ever-changing COVID landscape. While all are working to re- engineer service lines the economic aftershocks will be daunting for years to come. Ironically, the active population has far better prognoses and are at lower risk of experiencing the more severe symptoms of COVID-19 than the inactive population. With the additional strain COVID-19 has placed on our healthcare system, it is critical to promote health and physical activity; and without the active lifestyle industry, the American population will suffer.
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