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Alex Azar Blamed Workers’ Lifestyles for Coronavirus Outbreaks in Meat Plants

The HHS secretary said on a phone call that meatpackers were more likely to get coronavirus through “home and social” aspects of their lives.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar told lawmakers via phone that low-income meatpacking plant workers were more likely to contract the coronavirus through the “home and social” aspects of their lives rather than inside the facilities, Politico reported Thursday. Almost two dozen major meatpacking plants have been forced to close after over 6,500 workers tested positive for the coronavirus, which disproportionately affects workers of color. “He was essentially turning it around, blaming the victim and implying that their lifestyle was the problem,” Rep. Ann Kuster (D-NH) told Politico. The bipartisan call, which was reportedly intended to discuss the impact of the coronavirus on rural hospitals, changed topic after Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS) expressed concerns about shuttered plants. The CDC said in a report released Friday that “crowded conditions for workers in meat and poultry processing facilities could result in high risk for SARS-CoV-S transmission.”