Kentucky Resident Tests Positive for COVID-19 After Attending 'Coronavirus Party, Governor Says

A Kentucky resident has tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a 'coronavirus party' with [...]

A Kentucky resident has tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a "coronavirus party" with people in their twenties, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said at a press conference Tuesday. The age and condition of the patient were not released, nor were any additional details about the "party."

"This is the part where I, the person to tell everybody to be calm, have to remain calm myself," Beshear said. "Because anyone who goes to something like this may think that they are indestructible. But it's someone else's loved one that they are going to hurt. We are battling for the health and even the lives of our parents and our grandparents." "Don't be so callous as to intentionally go to something and expose yourself to something that can kill other people," he added. "We ought to be much better than that."

Kentucky currently has over 160 reported cases of COVID-19 and 39 new cases were reported on Tuesday. Four people have died from the disease in the state, the Louisville Courier Journal reports. In the United States, there have been over 55,000 confirmed cases and 804 deaths as of Wednesday morning.

"This is something that no one should be doing across the commonwealth," Beshear said of the party. "My job in these press conferences is to talk to you about how we're going to get through it — and we are — and that we're going to do everything we can to protect the lives of those around us. But this is one that makes me mad. And it should make you mad. Ultimately, the power of forgiveness, we get through this, we should forgive that person. But no more of these. Anywhere. Statewide. Ever. For any reason."

Those who are elderly and immunocompromised have appeared to be the most susceptible to the coronavirus, though a number of young people have been hospitalized due to the disease. It's also possible for people to have the virus and be asymptomatic, and if they continue to socialize with others, they could spread the virus unknowingly.

During the press conference, Beshear also praised the actions of those in his state who were helping others amid the pandemic, thanking residents for their "sacrifices" and for their "positive modeling of their behavior they're putting out there each and every day."

"Every day that you limit your social contact, every day that you follow the guidance, you protect people around you," he said. "It's hard to see, because we're supposed to be far apart from each other, but every day you follow the guidance you make Kentucky a little safer for the most vulnerable."

Photo Credit: Shutterstock

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