Man With Staggering .55 Blood-Alcohol Content Dies; Officials Call It A COVID-19 Death

The person’s blood-alcohol content (BAC) was 0.55 — not 0.05, but .55, which is nearly seven times the legal driving limit of 0.08 in Colorado. A BAC of 0.3 is considered lethal. So, open and shut case, right? Wrong. 

The state claims the person died of coronavirus, not alcohol poisoning. “County Coroner George Deavers said the person tested positive for COVID-19, but an investigation by him and the pathologist determined the cause of death was ethanol toxicity,” 

The Durango Herald wrote. “‘COVID was not listed on the death certificate as the cause of death. I disagree with the state for listing it as a COVID death, and will be discussing it with them this week,'” Deavers said.  

“Deavers said non-natural fatal events, such an accident or an overdose, take precedence as the cause of death over natural events such as COVID-19. He did not provide the name of the deceased person who tested positive for COVID-19,” The Herald wrote. 

“The person who died did not die from COVID-19, but they did test positive for the virus,” said county public information officer Vicki Shaffer. 

“The state is reporting that death as a COVID death, but our health department wanted to let people know that even though the person did have the virus, they did not die from it.”

RTWT.