The ‘Face Mask Exemption’ Cards With a Federal Seal on Them Are a Total Fraud
Recently, face mask exemption “cards” and “flyers” have been circulating on social media that have a Department of Justice seal and say that the cardholder is exempt from wearing a face mask in public. The cards state the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) does not require that the individual in question reveal their medical condition to businesses or organizations and threatens fines of tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Suffice to say that this group is not a federal agency and that these cards and flyers have not been issued or approved by the Justice Department. The department, as well as several U.S. attorneys, has come out and said that it has not issued the cards, posting a message directly on the ADA website, the law which the cards lean on to commit their fraud. The emphasis is made by the department.
“These postings were not issued by the Department and are not endorsed by the Department,” the Justice Department wrote. “The Department urges the public not to rely on the information contained in these postings and to visit ADA.gov for ADA information issued by the Department.”
U.S. Attorney Erica MacDonald of Minnesota issued a statement on the fraudulent face mask exemption documents on Friday and spoke to their illegality.
“The Department also has not granted permission for the use of its seal for this purpose. Misuse of the Department seal is a federal crime,” MacDonald’s office said.
