Image via @karensinthewild Instagram.

NYC Bagel & Coffee House (NYCBCH) has formally issued a response to the now viral video of an incident that took place on its Broadway location on Saturday, June 6th.

As previously, ALL CUSTOMERS ENTERING NYCBCH WILL BE REQUIRED TO WEAR A FACE MASK. Masks will also be on hand for staff to provide to customers who enter any location. The team at NYCBCH would like to express their sincerest regret that the incident took place at one of their locations and appreciates all community support at this time.

In addition to the aforementioned strictly-enforced procedures, NYCBCH has released an official statement, which can be seen on the store’s Instagram page.

The woman seen in the video, identified as Lauren Balsamo, proceeds to yell obscenities at fellow customers who confronted her for not wearing a mask, violating the store’s policies. When confronted, Balsamo then begins to cough on others waiting on line and then leaves the location with her order.

Weill Cornell Medicine, Balsamo’s former employer, released a statement via Twitter condemning Balsamo’s actions. The statement reads: “Lauren Balsamo has not been an employee of WCM since Jan. 2020. As an institution on the COVID-19 frontlines, this behavior is shocking & abhorrent to us. Since WCM’s mission is to protect the health & wellbeing of all NYers, we condemn this flagrant disregard of public safety.”

Balsamo has yet to publicly come out and issue a formal apology.

This is a developing story…