Two members of the US Congress have revealed they have tested positive for coronavirus.
Congressmen Mario Diaz-Balart, from Florida, and Ben McAdams, from Utah, announced they had gone into self-isolation.
Mr McAdams, 45, said he developed “mild cold-like symptoms” after returning home from Washington last weekend and tested positive yesterday for the virus after “my symptoms got worse and I developed a fever, a dry cough and laboured breathing”.
Mr Diaz-Balart, 58, has not returned home to Florida because his wife is at high risk as a cancer survivor. From his flat in the capital, he said last night that he was feeling “much better” and urged the public to “work together” during the crisis. Several other members of the House of Representatives and the Senate have self-quarantined in recent days after being in contact with people with the virus.
The first confirmed cases on Capitol Hill came as Congress sought bipartisan agreement on a $1 trillion package to try to combat the economic cost of the crisis by offering $1,000 handouts to every American.
The $105 billion Families First Coronavirus Response Act guarantees free testing and a fortnight’s sick pay, and was signed into law last night by Donald Trump.
Mr Trump has also invoked a Korean War-era law to ramp up the production of medical supplies.
He described himself as a “wartime president” and said: “Now it’s our time. We must sacrifice together because we are all in this together, and we will come through together. It’s the invisible enemy.”
Mr Trump added that he was sending two navy hospital ships to New York and the West Coast to help alleviate a possible shortage of beds.
The number of confirmed US cases has risen to more than 9,400, with more than 150 deaths, including three members of one New Jersey family.
