President Joseph Biden tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday. According to White House, the 79-year-old is experiencing “very mild symptoms.”
“This morning, President Biden tested positive for Covid-19. He is fully vaccinated and twice boosted and experiencing very mild symptoms,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre announced.
During a routine screening, the president tested positive for Covid-19 on an antigen test Thursday morning. It was also later confirmed by a PCR test by his physician.
Jean-Pierre also said he has begun taking Paxlovid. Paxlovid is Pfizer’s antiviral drug, which is available via emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The experimental treatment for mild to moderate Covid-19 symptoms is available for people 12 and older who are at high risk of severe illness. It requires a doctor’s prescription.
Biden tweeted a photo of himself cancelling his upcoming travel plans to meet with Senator Casey, Congressman Cartwright, and Mayor Cognetti, calling them his “Scranton cousins.” He said he’s doing great and keeping busy.
This is the first time Biden has tested positive for Covid-19, and he last tested negative on Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Jean-Pierre reported. Vice President Kamala Harris and first lady Jill Biden have tested negative on Thursday.
The vice president contracted the virus earlier this year in April.
Biden will continue to work in isolation until he tests negative. He will not return to in-person work at the White House once he tests negative.