NJ COVID Update: Man banished from New Jersey Planet Fitness due to surgical mask

UNION TOWNSHIP, New Jersey (WABC) – A New Jersey man has spoken out after saying he was banned from his local Planet Fitness because of a mask dispute – but not the kind you would think.

“It’s so stupid, if you do not think I’m saying it,” Jordan Binenstock said. “It just makes no sense. All the time it makes no sense.”

He says he wore to his gym in Union Township with a surgical mask instead of a cloth.

“They would not allow me,” he said. “They did not want to enter me because I was not wearing a cotton mask.”

Planet Fitness appears to be banning surgical masks, and Binenstock has even recorded several interactions with employees confirming this.

“The surgical mask, according to us from the business staff, is that it tends to tear or worsen if you wear it sweaty while exercising,” an employee told him. “So it was not allowed.”

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Binestock prefers the surgical mask because it does not irritate his skin, and it is the same kind that Governor Phil Murphy regularly wears during his press conferences.

The governor’s executive order on the reopening of the gym “requires workers and customers to wear face masks”, but it later states “nothing in the stated policy may prevent workers or clients from wearing a surgical degree mask or other more protective face covering. if the individual is already in possession of such equipment. ‘

A Planet Fitness spokeswoman responded.

“The safety and well-being of our staff and members is still our top priority,” the report said. “Members and guests may wear disposable surgical masks at our clubs in New Jersey” and “We believe there was incorrect communication on the guidelines, and the local Planet Fitness location is aware of this.”

But that apparently did not solve the situation.

“I think the problem is that you have reached a business,” Binenstock said. “And the problem is, it’s a franchise.”

So he named his former gym, and sure enough he got the same answer.

“You can only wear cotton or cloth,” he said. “No surgery.”

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Binenstock’s says Planet Fitness has canceled its membership, and he not only wants to apologize, but also a refund.

“They wasted a lot of customers’ time and money,” he said.

Governor Murphy’s office told Eyewitness News that businesses must be flexible in allowing individuals to wear any CDC-compliant mask, including a surgical mask.

‘The governor’s orders regarding the wearing of a mask are aimed at ensuring that as many individuals as possible wear masks so that NJ residents can participate more safely in certain activities and minimize the spread of the virus. . ‘ “We want to urge businesses to be flexible in allowing individuals to wear any mask that complies with CDC and that is relevant to the activity in question, as indicated in Executive Order 192.”

If you think a business is violating a mask policy, you can file a complaint online by CLICK HERE.

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