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WALTON, Ky. – A high school student in Kentucky who refused to be vaccinated against chickenpox and sued the state to defend his choice caught the disease, his lawyer said.
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Jerome Kunkel, 18, began showing symptoms of chicken pox last week and hopes to recover by next week, said lawyer Christopher Wiest.
Kunkel invoked religious beliefs when he refused to be vaccinated against chicken pox during an outbreak at his school, Assumption Academy, in Walton, reported The Cincinnati Enquirer. The school is affiliated with the Fraternity of St. Pius X, a conservative branch of Roman Catholicism that rejects the reforms of Vatican II.
Some Catholics oppose vaccination against chickenpox as it was developed in the 1960s from cell lines of two aborted fetuses, reported NBC News.
While chickenpox was spreading to the Assumption Academy and to its elementary school, the Notre-Dame-du-Sacré-Coeur school, the local health department prohibited unvaccinated students and not immune to prevent the spread. Affected students were first restricted to extracurricular activities, reported Enquirer. Then, on March 14, they were ordered to stay at home after at least 21 days after the last case.
Kunkel sued in the Boone County District Court, claiming that the order was discriminatory in respect of his religious beliefs. Judge James R. Schrand ruled against Kunkel.
Since Kunkel has chickenpox, he is considered immune. He has not been in class since March 15, but he hopes to return soon, said Wiest.
"The ban was stupid," said Wiest. "He could have contracted this in March and be back to school now."
Public health officials criticized Wiest, saying it "minimized the dangers of chicken pox".
"Encouraging the spread of an acute infectious disease in a community demonstrates total disregard for the health and safety of unsuspecting friends, family, neighbors, and the general public," said the Department of Public Health. Northern Kentucky in a statement.
© 2019 Cox Media Group.
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