German mayor deliberately contracts Covid-19 from wife
One German Mayor, Stephan von Dassel has deliberately contracted coronavirus disease so as to be immune to it against medical expert’s social distancing advice.
The Berlin District Mayor sparked controversy in Germany last week after admitting to consciously contracting coronavirus from his partner to self-immunise and be able to work while others were off sick.
Even though his decision went against the general consensus of public health experts, most of who recommended social-distancing to avoid the virus, von Dassel claimed that he saw his deliberate infection as a ‘contribution’ towards the long-term goal of flattening the curve of the infection. He did admit that he underestimated the virus, though.
The Berlin official went on to tweet a link to a statement published by Berlin Mitte office from von Dassel, which stated that he was quarantined for 14 days after his partner tested positive for coronavirus.
He added that living in close proximity to someone infected, catching the virus himself would have been ‘almost unavoidable’ anyway.
“Since infection with a common home quarantine for 14 days is hardly avoidable despite all precautionary measures, I consciously accepted to catch it quickly,” von Dassel concluded.
“I was ill longer than I thought. I got infected almost on purpose to develop immunity and thought I’ll be a bit sick for three days and then I’ll be immune — I can’t catch it and won’t pass it on to anyone, but it was a lot worse than I imagined,” von Dassel told public broadcaster RBB.
The mayor’s statement sparked a heated debate online, with many accusing him of being irresponsible by consciously ignoring general guidelines during the pandemic and putting others at risk. However, von Dassel continued defending his actions, adding that perhaps his original statement was not as clear as he would have liked.
“Perhaps my statement on the radio today was misleading. But my behaviour was and is responsible. I was, am and remain in quarantine, until I’m no longer infectious,” von Dassel said on Wednesday.
