The White House announced Vice President Kamala Harris has tested positive for COVID-19.
What Happened: Harris’ press secretary Kirsten Allen shared the news in a statement.
“Today, Vice President Harris tested positive for COVID-19 on rapid and PCR tests,” Allen’s statement said. “She has exhibited no symptoms, will isolate and continue to work from the Vice President’s residence.
“She has not been a close contact to the President or First Lady due to their respective recent travel schedules,” Allen added. “She will follow CDC guidelines and the advice of her physicians. The Vice President will return to the White House when she tests negative.”
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What Else Happened: Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff, tested positive for COVID last month. This month, positive COVID tests were reported by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Attorney General Merrick Garland, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, Sens. Susan Collins and Raphael Warnock, and Reps. Adam Schiff and Joaquin Castro.
Last month, Ireland’s Prime Minister Micheál Martin tested positive for COVID-19 during a visit to Washington; He briefly interacted with President Joe Biden before receiving his test results. Biden has never tested positive, although his predecessor Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive COVID in the fall of 2020.
Since the pandemic began, 171 members of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate have been diagnosed with COVID-19. In that same time, nearly 81 million people in the U.S. have tested positive for COVID-19; nearly 1 million people in the U.S. have died from COVID-19, according to the New York Times.
Photo by Gage Skidmore / Flickr Creative Commons
