You don't need to wear a face mask any more once you've had COVID, according to the CEO of this large US hospital operator ... No really, he said that.
Just when you thought the issue of mask-wearing couldn’t get any crazier, along comes a report that hoists the barking moonbat bonkers bar to a hitherto unattained height.
We have CNN to thank for the news that the CEO of one of the largest health systems in the US is not going to wear a mask at work because: “He’s already had COVID”.
Pause a moment and let that sink in … So apart from the staggering message that sends to the public, Sanford Health’s head honcho in South Dakota reckons the science is in and he’s now both immune and not infectious.
Spoiler alert: That ain’t so.
What’s worse, Kelby Krabbenhoft told Sanford Health’s 50,000 employees in an email: “For me to wear a mask defies the efficacy and purpose of a mask and sends an untruthful message … I have no interest in using masks as a symbolic gesture.”
Unsurprisingly, his employees beg to differ. “We are supposed to be leaders in the community. How can we be taken seriously when this is our CEO?” said one nurse who didn’t want to be named in case she lost her job.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the US doesn’t buy into the Krabbenhoft theory either, advising all folks to wear masks whether or not they have had COVID-19, because when it comes to immunity and reinfection we just don’t know enough to be certain.
Even Krabbenhoft’s own company has its doubts.
“Kelby Krabbenhoft’s email was based on his own experience with COVID-19 and his personal opinions about the virus. They do not reflect the views of our health system as a whole,” Micah Aberson, Executive Vice President of Sanford Health, said in a statement to CNN.
In case you were wondering, Krabbenhoft does have a medical background, describing himself as a “scrub technician” in his youth who was part of a team that worked in OR.
Incidentally, South Dakota does not have a mandate requiring folks to wear masks and now has one of the highest per capita rates of COVID-19 infection and hospitalisation rates in the US.
Just sayin’ …
Footnote: Not long after we first published this story, CNN reports that Krabbenhoft has left the company as a result of his mask stance.
If you see something stupid, say something stupid … send more symbolic gestures to felicity@medicalrepublic.com.au.
