White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, Who Is Fully Vaccinated, Tests Positive for COVID
White House Press Secretary announced on Sunday that she tested positive for COVID-19 as she explained why she failed to join President Joe Biden on his foreign trip.
Psaki contracted the COVID-19 virus despite being vaccinated against the disease.
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White House Press Secretary Tests Positive For COVID Despite Vaccine
In a statement she shared on Twitter, Jen Psaki announced that her decision not to travel with the president on Thursday to Europe was due to a "family emergency."
"On Wednesday, in coordination with senior leadership at the White House and the medical team, I made the decision not to travel on the foreign trip with the president due to a family emergency," Psaki said.
Sharing full statement and grateful I am vaccinated and for the amazing Biden team pic.twitter.com/QDokXo47dK
— Karine Jean-Pierre (@PressSec) October 31, 2021
Psaki noted that she was disclosing her COVID-19 positive result "out of an abundance of transparency."
It was White House Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre who traveled with Biden to Europe, Deadline reported. According to Psaki, several family members at her home were infected with COVID-19 earlier in the week.
Psaki has "thanked" the vaccine as she believes it was the reason why she only had "mild" symptoms that allowed her to continue working from home.
When Did White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki Last Saw Joe Biden?
Jen Psaki said she had not been in close contact with Joe Biden or any senior White House staff members a few days before contracting the COVID-19.
According to Psaki, she quarantined and tested negative via PCR test on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. However, she said she tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday.
"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," Psaki noted.
Psaki said she last saw Joe Biden on Tuesday, "when we sat outside more than six-feet apart, and wore masks." She noted that she would return to work after the completion of her 10-day quarantine.
"I will plan to return to work in person at the conclusion of the ten-day quarantine following a negative rapid test," Psaki noted, adding that it's an "additional White House requirement" beyond the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Last Monday, a day before Psaki's last contact with Biden, Fox News reported that the president was seen coughing into his hands without a mask following a speech in New Jersey. Joe Biden was also seen using the same hands to shake hands with other officials.
Psaki contracted the virus days after Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas contracted COVID-19 despite being fully vaccinated.
Meanwhile, Mayorkas' diagnosis came days following his attendance at the 40th Annual National Peace Officers' Memorial Service in the U.S. Capitol alongside Biden on October 13.
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Joshua Summers
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