BYU-Idaho students may be intentionally contracting COVID
Officials at BYU-Idaho said they are "deeply troubled" by reports that students on campus are intentionally trying to contract COVID-19 in order to recover and then sell their plasma, containing virus antibodies.
"The university condemns this behavior and is actively seeking evidence of any such conduct among our student body," the school said in a statement. "Students who are determined to have intentionally exposed themselves or others to the virus will be immediately suspended from the university and may be permanently dismissed."
Still, cases are definitely rising sharply in the state. Idaho's test-positivity rate spiked to 14.7% for week ending Oct. 8 -- twice the national rate of 5.9% during the same time period, according to an internal Health and Human Services memo obtained by ABC News. Idaho has the sixth-highest rate of infection in the country, the latest White House coronavirus task force report, obtained by ABC News and dated Oct. 10, shows.
The school, located in Rexburg, Idaho, is operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.