BYU-Idaho students, admin react to rumors of students purposely contracting COVID-19
Brigham Young University in Rexburg, Idaho sent out a warning to their students on Oct. 12 after rumors surfaced of students intentionally contracting COVID-19.
The university said they were “deeply troubled” by the rumors and warned that if anyone was caught contracting COVID-19 intentionally, or exposing others to it, they would be immediately suspended from the university.
According to the statement, the university was informed that students were hoping to contract the virus so they could sell their plasma, which would contain COVID-19 antibodies.
There is currently no physical evidence of any student trying to contract the virus.
For students attending the university, like sophomore Jeorgina Castillo, this announcement brought a lot of anger. Castillo said that she believes this issue could cause BYU-Idaho to shut down, which is something she’s not OK with. Castillo hopes that students, even from other universities, will take this warning seriously.
The university was quick to take action on the rumor. The statement also warned that they would be “actively seeking” for such evidence.
The rumors surrounding this activity came as COVID-19 cases started to skyrocket in Madison County where BYU-Idaho is located. According to East Idaho News, this county has the highest infection rate across the entire health district.
According to the news report, “The outbreak is so bad that data collected and updated by the New York Times lists the Rexburg metro area as having the highest number of new cases, relative to its population, in the last two weeks.”
Biolife, a donation center 40 minutes away from campus, is offering $200 per donation for people with the antibodies compared to $20-$50 per donation regularly. Biomat USA is another center paying extra for antibodies. Although that may seem like a lot of money, it is very short-lived considering that people are only eligible to donate while the antibodies remain in their system.
Vlasta Hakes, a spokeswoman for Grifols, a parent company to Biomat USA, another plasma donation center, spoke to the Salt Lake Tribune about the situation.
Hakes said the idea of intentionally contracting this infection was “ludicrous” and “there’s no way to tell how sick someone might get from COVID-19. Students could be risking their life — and potentially infecting others — for a little extra cash.”
BYU-Idaho spokesman Brett Crandall said they have no more information at this time and the university currently has no way of knowing for certain if students are contracting the virus intentionally. However, the statement does warn that reckless behavior and disregard for health has severe consequences in the community and doesn’t just affect the individual.
@JaceeCaldwell
Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article incorrectly identified Grifols as a parent company to Biolife. Grifols is the parent company of Biomat USA.