Madison, WI – The statewide coalition effort to combat the spread of COVID-19 is ramping up its messaging as the public health crisis gripping Wisconsin worsens by the day. Today, the “Stop the COVID Spread!” coalition released its third public education announcement on broadcast TV and digital platforms statewide, the latest in the coalition’s efforts urging Wisconsin residents to do their part to help reverse the public health crisis that is threatening to overwhelm the state.
The latest ad features Katie, a registered nurse at ThedaCare Regional Medical Center-Appleton, in one of the regions of the state that has been hardest-hit by the growing crisis. “We are all sick and tired of COVID-19, but right now Wisconsin, we need you to step up,” Katie says in the ad. “As scary as it can be, and as difficult and challenging as our days are, we just need everyone else to gather in and help us.”
“As rates of COVID-19 infection continue to escalate throughout Wisconsin, this message is a crucial reminder from the frontline health care workers who are putting themselves on the line each day to keep our state’s residents safe and healthy,” said Eric Borgerding, President and CEO of the Wisconsin Hospital Association. “We count on these health care heroes to be there for us and your loved ones, so thank them by wearing a mask, social distancing, and taking this deadly pandemic seriously. For those essential workers and the vulnerable in our communities, we need to turn this public health crisis around before it overwhelms our state.”
Since its launch on October 9, the “Stop the COVID Spread!” coalition has grown dramatically to include nearly 100 of Wisconsin’s leading health care, business, and advocacy organizations, including the recent addition of more than 40 chambers of commerce from communities all over Wisconsin. The organizations have joined together in a campaign to educate the public about the seriousness of the growing crisis in Wisconsin and the critical and growing need for preventative measures. A full list of member organizations is below.
“Wisconsin’s business community is coming together with our frontline health care workers to stress the importance of taking COVID-19 seriously,” said Kurt Bauer, President & CEO of Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce. “Our state’s employers are taking critical steps to keep workers safe on the job, but it is just as important for Wisconsinites to take similar actions when they are at home and in public.”
The latest ad follows previous public education announcements from Former Wisconsin Governor, United States Secretary of Health and Human Services, and current University of Wisconsin System President Tommy Thompson, and from Adrian Amos, Kenny Clark, and Marquez Valdes-Scantling of the Green Bay Packers. It is the latest effort launched by the “Stop the COVID Spread!” coalition encouraging the use of crucial safety measures to help reduce the spread of COVID-19.
You can watch the full video at: https://youtu.be/gMWBbkx_aF4
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For more information about the Stop the Spread coalition and the importance of safe behaviors for both public and state economic health, visit www.wha.org/stopthecovidspread or contact:
ThedaCare – Cassandra Wallace, Cassandra.Wallace@thedacare.org
Wisconsin Hospital Association – Myranda Tanck, mt@platform-communications.com
Wisconsin Grocers Association – Brandon Scholz, brandon@wisconsingrocers.com
Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce – Nick Novak, nnovak@wmc.org
Wisconsin Restaurant Association – Tracy Kosbau, tkosbau@wirestaurant.org
Wisconsin Counties Association – Mark D. O’Connell, oconnell@wicounties.org
The growing coalition is currently made up of the following organizations:
- Wisconsin Hospital Association, CO-CHAIR
- Wisconsin Counties Association, CO-CHAIR
- Wisconsin Grocers Association, CO-CHAIR
- Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC), CO-CHAIR
- Wisconsin Restaurant Association, CO-CHAIR
- Alliance of Health Insurers
- Arts Wisconsin
- Associated Builders & Contractors of Wisconsin
- Association of Wisconsin Surgery Centers, Inc.
- Beaver Dam Area Chamber of Commerce
- Cottage Grove Chamber of Commerce
- Deforest Windsor Area Chamber of Commerce
- Eagle River Area Chamber of Commerce
- Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce
- Elkhorn Area Chamber of Commerce & Tourism Center, Inc.
- Fitchburg Chamber of Commerce
- Fort Atkinson Area Chamber of Commerce
- Forward Janesville, Inc.
- Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce and Industry
- Fox West Chamber of Commerce
- Greater Green Bay Chamber
- Greater Wausau Chamber of Commerce
- Green Bay Packers
- Hartford Area Chamber of Commerce
- Hayward Area Chamber of Commerce
- Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce
- Hudson Area Chamber of Commerce & Tourism Bureau
- Jefferson Chamber of Commerce
- Kenosha Area Chamber of Commerce
- LeadingAge Wisconsin
- League of Municipalities
- Marinette Menominee Area Chamber of Commerce
- Marshfield Area Chamber of Commerce & Industry
- Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (MMAC)
- Middleton Chamber of Commerce
- Milwaukee Brewers
- Milwaukee Bucks
- Monona East Side Business Alliance
- Monroe Chamber of Commerce & Industry
- Mosinee Area Chamber of Commerce
- New Berlin Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau
- New Richmond Area Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau
- Oregon Area Chamber of Commerce
- Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce
- Park Falls Area Chamber of Commerce
- Pharmacy Society of Wisconsin
- Portage County Business Council
- Pulaski Area Chamber of Commerce
- Racine Area Manufacturers and Commerce
- Rural Wisconsin Health Cooperative
- Shawano Country Chamber of Commerce
- Sheboygan County Chamber of Commerce
- St. Germain Area Chamber of Commerce
- Stoughton Chamber of Commerce
- Sun Prairie Chamber of Commerce
- The Arc Wisconsin
- The Chamber of Manitowoc County
- UW System
- VISIT Lake Geneva
- Visit Milwaukee
- WAMD-Wisconsin Association of Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine
- Washburn Area Chamber of Commerce
- Waushara Area Chamber of Commerce
- Whitewater Chamber of Commerce
- Waunakee Area Chamber of Commerce
- Wisconsin Academy of Family Physicians
- Wisconsin Assisted Living Association
- Wisconsin Association of Health Plans
- Wisconsin Association of Local Health Department and Boards (WALHDAB)
- Wisconsin Association of School Administrators
- Wisconsin Association of Surgery Centers, Inc.
- Wisconsin Bankers Association
- Wisconsin Broadcasters Association
- Wisconsin Builders Association
- Wisconsin Credit Union League
- Wisconsin Dental Association
- Wisconsin Director of Nursing Council
- Wisconsin Health Care Association / Wisconsin Center for Assisted Living
- Wisconsin Healthcare Business Forum
- Wisconsin Medical Society
- Wisconsin Office of Rural Health
- Wisconsin Petroleum Marketers & Convenience Store Association
- Wisconsin Primary Health Care Association
- Wisconsin Propane Gas Association
- Wisconsin Public Health Association
- Wisconsin Realtors Association
- Wisconsin Safety Council
- Wisconsin State Telecommunications Association
- Wisconsin Technology Council
- Wisconsin Transportation Builders Association
- Wisconsin Utilities Association
