Two nurses stand in a hospital via Getty Images. (NanoStockk/iStock/Getty Images Plus)

The COVID-19 seems to have made some people lose their minds. But in this case, it was a Connecticut doctor who responded to the outbreak by acting a fool. Dr. Cory Edgar of West Hartford was arrested for breach of peace after he engaged in questionable behavior at his clinic.

According to The Hartford Courant, the police report indicated that workers at the UConn Health outpatient surgery called the police to report the doctor, “deliberately coughing on and hugging nurses, causing them a substantial amount of alarm.” Apparently, there were multiple witnesses to his behavior.

University spokesperson Stephanie Reitz told The Courant, “The witnesses and medical workers believed he was purposely disregarding space and safety concerns involving the Coronavirus pandemic.”

The authorities issued a misdemeanor summons, and the doctor is supposed to appear in court in June. He is not believed to have been infected by the virus. UConn Health spokesperson Jennifer Walker explained, “The involved doctor has confirmed that he is in excellent health and does not to his knowledge have COVID-19.”

This isn’t the only individual who has found themselves in trouble for weaponizing their coughs.

Did I really just type that? 2020 is crazy. We need to do better, people.

Anyway, law enforcement in other states has arrested other individuals for engaging in the same type of behavior as Dr. Edgar. In New Jersey, a man was arrested for making a terrorist threat after he deliberately coughed near a supermarket employee.

Elsewhere in the Garden State, a man started coughing at police and medics while being arrested. In yet another area of New Jersey, a woman who was being arrested on charges of driving under the influence coughed on an officer and said, “Oh, by the way, I have the coronavirus and so do you now.”

What the hell is going on in Jersey?

In Chicago, a 21-year-old man named Anthony Ponzi was detained by the authorities after he coughed into the faces of police officers. He also claimed he was infected with the coronavirus. The police were arresting him because he hit another car while driving on the wrong side of the road. He later admitted that he did not have the virus.

Also, in Connecticut, another wayward soul managed to get himself in trouble after he also coughed on a CT State Police trooper on Thursday after they responded to reports of a disturbance in the parking lot of a business in East Putnam. The suspect, who was alleged to have struck his girlfriend, had been driving under the influence. After coughing on the officer, he said, “Now you’re infected.”

So who is to blame for the behavior of these individuals? Well, of course, they are primarily to blame. But one cannot discount the influence of the media, which went from downplaying the illness to attempting to incite panic and criticism toward the Trump administration. Throughout the pandemic, the corporate press’ mission appears to be twofold: Convince Americans that deaths from the virus are the president’s fault, and try to cause as much of a panic as possible. It’s a beautiful way to boost ratings and promote a political agenda, isn’t it?

Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Follow me on Twitter: @JeffOnTheRight

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