Jack Allard, a Bates College graduate, is currently in a coma where he is fighting for his young life after a terrible mix-up involving a coronavirus test.
The 25-year-old man from New Jersey, who is a former two-time All-American lacrosse player, fell ill on March 13. According to his mother, Genny Allard, he was suffering from high fever, back pain, and he was also vomiting.
Aware that these are the symptoms of the deadly coronavirus, Allard checked into a hospital and took measures to be tested, hoping he would receive some kind of a treatment for the disease. That is when something went wrong with the test results.
It is not known how but his COVID-19 test sample got lost in the lab that was supposed to handle it, and therefore, he never received the diagnosis that would have allowed him to get the treatment he so desperately needed.
Allard, who works at the Bank of America in Manhattan, saw his health deteriorate, pushing doctors to finally do a second test, which confirmed that he did indeed contracted the coronavirus.
Allard’s mom decided to speak about his sad situation while taking a few shots at wealthy NBA players who are able to quickly access coronavirus tests while everyday Americans have been turned away because of the shortage.
The distressed mother appeared on Fox News where she revealed: “There’s no reason why NBA players with their sniffles are getting their results before my son who is on a ventilator. My son is healthy, no pre-existing conditions, and he’s 25 – this virus is really dangerous, and now he is very, very sick.”
On Wednesday, Allard was airlifted from JFK Medical Center in Edison, New Jersey to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, where his entourage is working overtime for him to finally get access to an experimental drug that has already saved many lives.
Allard is said to be in critical condition and is reportedly in a medically-induced coma and breathing with the help of a ventilator.
Bates men’s lacrosse coach Peter Lasagna and Rep. Josh Gottheimer from New Jersey have been pushing for the young man to soon begin receiving Remdesivir, an experimental drug produced by Gilead Sciences Inc.
However, there were some hiccups along the way to access the drug and because of the high demand for Remdesivir, Gilead revealed that it would only be accessible to pregnant women and children under 18.
The family and the congressman were able to successfully lobby the company to make an exception for Allard.
Friends and family members have taken to social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter to share prayers and positive thoughts with the former Bates College student during this tough moment in his life.
There are currently 4,402 confirmed cases in New Jersey and 62 deaths.
