Gym owners ask authorities to open sector

The Dominican Business Association of Gymnasiums, Wellbeing & Sports requested the Health Cabinet to reopen the sector, which actively contributes to Dominicans’ comprehensive well-being and collaborates with the maintenance and preservation of health and the prevention of diseases.

Since the beginning of the health emergency, the gym and physical activity industry has been respectful and has complied with all the authorities’ measures to mitigate the effects of the pandemic and prevent the spread of Covid-19.

Many of the companies in the sector have invested significant resources to comply with the COVID protocols, hiring additional personnel, monitoring the correct and permanent use of masks while in the facilities, ensuring social distancing, increasing the use of products and equipment—sanitation, as well as many other audited and approved measures.

The probabilities of contagion within a gym that complies with the protocols, according to numerous studies carried out in European and North American universities, are less than 0.05%; While those same studies show that in social and family gatherings in small groups, the possibility of contagion can reach up to 80%.

The association asked to eliminate the curfew because it stimulates the crowding of people by reducing the working window of operation and, among other things, it also encourages crowds in public transportation.

“Consistently supervise and enforce the protocols of distancing, asepsis, and personal protection, regardless of the sector, industry, or company. That is, to renounce the practice of favoring or penalizing companies according to their industry ”, they indicate.

They call for the continuation and reinforcement of the massive communication campaign on these protocols and the consequences of not complying with them.

In 2020, about 70% of gyms closed, and, unfortunately, with decisions such as postponing the opening in January 2021, there is a high risk that the closings will continue. This sector is a fundamental part of the development of the Dominican Republic and a provider of a large number of direct and indirect jobs, which are the livelihood of many Dominican families.

The businessmen’s association reiterated that its sole objective is to contribute to Dominicans’ health and well-being and urges the authorities to take them into account as part of the solution to the health emergency.