- A Texas man has passed away after battling COVID-19 for a month in hospital.
- Chris Wallace, 30, previously protested against pandemic safety measures and the “COVID tyranny.”
- His wife Jessica previously said her husband’s illness had been a “humbling, eye-opening experience.”
A man from Texas who organized protests against COVID-19 safety measures has died of the virus after spending nearly a month in hospital.
Caleb Wallace’s death was confirmed by his wife Jessica on a GoFundMe page that she had created to raise funds for medical and household bills.
“Caleb has peacefully passed on. He will forever live in our hearts and minds,” she wrote.
The 30-year-old father of three helped organize rallies last year to protest against pandemic safety measures, including lockdowns, masks, and vaccinations, which he called “COVID tyranny.”
His wife, Jessica Wallace, told the San Angelo Standard-Times that her husband began showing symptoms on July 26 and initially refused to get tested or go to the hospital.
Wallace chose to treat himself with ivermectin, an anti-parasitic medication used to deworm horses, and high doses of Vitamin C,
zinc
aspirin, and an inhaler.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Food and Drug Administration have warned people against taking ivermectin, which they say does not help prevent or treat coronavirus, and can cause severe illness.
Four days later, Wallace’s condition deteriorated, and he was taken to the emergency room by a relative, the San Angelo Standard-Times said.
Since August 8, Wallace has been unconscious, ventilated, and heavily sedated in an intensive care unit at Shannon Medical Centre, the San Angelo Standard-Times said.
On Wednesday, Jessica Wallace, who is pregnant with the couple’s fourth child, posted a “heartbreaking update” on Facebook.
“It’s not looking in our favor. His lungs are stiff due to the fibrosis,” she said. “They called and said they’ve run out of options for him and asked if I would consent to a do not resuscitate. And it would be up to us when to stop treatments.
“My heart just can’t. I can’t imagine my life without him. I’m sorry if I don’t respond to any calls or texts or messages. I am just broken up.”
On Saturday, Jessica told The New York Times that her husband was being shifted to a hospice.
Jessica Wallace had previously described her husband’s illness as a “humbling, eye-opening experience,” according to San Angelo Standard-Times.
She told the paper that her views were “less conservative” than her husband’s and preferred to wear a mask.
“Caleb would tell me, ‘You know masks aren’t going to save you,’ but he understood I wanted to wear them,” she said.
In July 2020, Caleb Wallace helped organize a “Freedom Rally” that was described as being for people “sick of the government being in control of our lives,” the San Angelo Standard-Times said.
He also founded the San Angelo Freedom Defenders, who organized a separate rally against COVID-19 safety measures.