White House press secretary Jen Psaki tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday, she said in a statement, adding she had last seen President Joe Biden on Tuesday.
Psaki, 42, who stated she was vaccinated and experiencing mild symptoms, said she and the president sat outside more than 6 feet (1.8 m) apart and wore masks on Tuesday. Biden tested negative for COVID-19 on Saturday, said a person familiar with the matter.
“I am disclosing today’s positive test out of an abundance of transparency,” Psaki said.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Sunday she has tested positive for COVID-19.
ReplyDelete"While I have not had close contact in person with the president or senior members of the White House staff since Wednesday - and tested negative for four days after that last contact -- I am disclosing today's positive test out of an abundance of transparency," Psaki said in a statement. "I last saw the president on Tuesday, when we sat outside more than six-feet apart, and wore masks."
Psaki said she has been vaccinated and is experiencing mild symptoms. She will return to work after a 10-day quarantine following a negative test.
The press secretary dropped off President Joe Biden's ongoing trip in Europe before he departed, citing a family emergency, which is that members of her family have tested positive for the virus.
She is among the highest-ranking administration officials to contract the disease, with a recent precedent being Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
White House press secretary regularly interacts with the president. Biden, who at age 78 is considered in the high-risk group should he be infected with the virus, has received his Pfizer coronavirus vaccine booster shot.