Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox Use Friend’s Coronavirus Struggle to Urge People to Take Pandemic Seriously

Former Friends co-stars Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox are urging their millions of fans to take the coronavirus pandemic seriously and wear a mask. The two stars shared a photo of a friend attached to various hospital equipment, adding that he was perfectly healthy before testing positive for COVID-19. The centers for Disease Control and Prevention has suggested Americans wear masks to help slow the spread of the virus, while many states and cities have enacted mask mandates.

Aniston shared a photo of their friend Kevin, taken in early April. Kevin was “perfectly healthy” and had no underlying health conditions before he contracted COVID-19, and has mostly recovered from the disease. “This is real,” Aniston said, adding that people cannot naively think they can “outrun” the virus if we want it to end. “And we do, right? The one step we can take is PLEASE wear a damn mask,” Aniston wrote.

“Just think about those who’ve already suffered through this horrible virus. Do it for your family. And most of all yourself. Covid affects all ages,” Aniston wrote. Aniston included a photo of herself and Cox wearing blue masks. Cox also shared a video of her dogs wearing masks to encourage others to do the same.

Aniston was right about the coronavirus affecting Americans of all ages. The number of young people testing positive for the virus is on the rise. In one shocking case on Friday, officials in Nueces County, Texas reported 85 children under the age of 2 tested positive for the virus since March. Fifty-two of the children who tested positive are less than a year old. “Please help us to stop the spread of this disease,” Annette Rodriguez, the county’s health director, said Friday, reports NBC News. “Stay social distanced from others; stay protected. Wear a mask when in public and for everyone else please do your best to stay home.”

There have been over 3.7 million coronavirus cases in the U.S. since the pandemic began, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Over 140,000 Americans have died from complications of COVID-19. Over 45.7 million Americans have tested positive and over 1.13 million have recovered. On Saturday, the CDC reported over 74,000 new cases in the U.S., with record cases recorded in several states, reports NPR. On Friday, Texas reported a state daily record of 174 deaths, while Florida recorded 90 more deaths on Friday.