On Monday the governor of Kentucky chastised an unnamed resident who attended an actual “coronavirus party,” and became infected.
“Anyone who goes to something like this, may think that they are indestructible,” Governor Andy Beshear said, restraining his anger. “But it’s someone else’s loved one that they are going to hurt.”
And now a well-known right wing website is suggesting intentionally infecting those who do not have COVID-19 with “the mildest form” of the deadly coronavirus in a “socially and medically responsible” manner similar to antediluvian “chickenpox parties.”
“It is time to think outside the box and seriously consider a somewhat unconventional approach to COVID-19: controlled voluntary infection,” The Federalist says on Twitter.
The Federalist, co-founded by Ben Domenech, a regular guest on NBC’s and MSNBC’s “Meet the Press” and the spouse of Meghan McCain, on Tuesday published the article: “How Medical ‘Chickenpox Parties’ Could Turn The Tide Of The Wuhan Virus.” Its author, Douglas A. Perednia, is a Portland, Oregon dermatologist. (NCRM will not link to the article.)
The author appears to have created the term “Controlled Voluntary Infection,” which he calls “CVI,” and which is misspelled on The Federalist’s website:
(Google was unable to find the term “Controlled Voluntary Infection” anywhere else but The Federalist’s website.)
Perednia wants these coronavirus parties to be fun: “one could imagine CVI even becoming a social activity,” he advocates.
His program includes keeping a list of everyone in the nation who has been infected and who has not: “For the first time, we would have a handle on exactly who in the population has been infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, and their immune status.”
But contemplating the “limitations,” Perednia wonders if American society will “allow people the freedom to participate in CVI programs?”
And he asks: “Will we allow parents to make these sorts of infection decisions for both themselves and their children?”
There’s another limitation Perednia does not include.
“It’s unclear whether people who recover from COVID-19 will be immune to reinfection from the coronavirus and, if so, how long that immunity will last,” according to NPR.