United States President Joe Biden was again diagnosed with Covid-19 on Saturday July 30 without experiencing any symptoms. He will return to solitary confinement for ” protect “ his entourage, announced his personal doctor in a letter distributed by the White House.
The president, who is 79 years old, “tested positive late Saturday morning according to an antigen test” and “will resume strict containment measures”wrote Dr. Kevin O’Connor, that cases of ” bounce “ positivity are common among people treated with Paxlovid, Pfizer’s anti-Covid pill.
Mr. Biden himself tweeted to break the news. “Friends, I tested positive for Covid again. It happens to a small minority of people. I have no symptoms but I will self-isolate for the safety of everyone around me”, did he write.
“I’m still working and I’ll be back on the road soon”said the one who was to go to Michigan on August 2 to speak on a law releasing 52 billion dollars in subsidies to revive the production of semiconductors in the United States.
Under observation
This trip – like another to Wilmington, Delaware – will not take place for the moment, the American executive has said, and the president will remain in solitary confinement at the White House until he is tested negative.
As Mr. Biden had tested negative on Tuesday evening, Wednesday morning, Thursday morning and Friday morning, “it is indeed a rebound positivity”according to Mr. Biden’s doctor. “The President has not experienced a re-emergence of symptoms and continues to feel completely well”he added. “There is therefore no reason to resume treatment at this stage”but Mr. Biden, the oldest president ever elected in the United States, will remain under observation, he continued.
Mr. Biden had tested positive on July 21 with “very mild symptoms” and came out of confinement on Wednesday, after testing negative.
fully vaccinated
The president, fully vaccinated and who has received two booster doses, wishes to “protect all those (…) who have to work near him”whether White House staff, his bodyguards or those around him, Dr. O’Connor concluded.
Paxlovid is an antiviral treatment that works by reducing the ability of the virus to replicate, thus slowing the progression of the disease. It must be taken within the first few days after symptoms appear to be effective. It is recommended in the United States for people at risk of developing a severe case of the disease, a category in which the American president falls due to his age.
Joe Biden’s predecessor, Republican Donald Trump, announced on October 2, 2020 on Twitter that he had been diagnosed with Covid-19. He had been evacuated by helicopter from the White House to the Walter Reed military hospital, and had been treated there for three nights.