Biden tests negative for COVID-19, White House says
WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden has tested negative for COVID-19, the White House said in a statement.
"The President's symptoms have resolved," Dr. Kevin O'Connor, the president's physician, wrote in a statement. "Over the course of his infection, he never manifested a fever, and his vital signs remained normal, to include pulse oximetry. His lungs remained clear."
"He will continue to be monitored for any recurrence of illness. The President continues to perform all of his presidential duties," the statement continued.
Last Week, the president tested positive for COVID while campaigning in Las Vegas. He had to cancel a speech at the UnidosUS annual conference before isolating himself at his home in Delaware.
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O'Connor had said in a note that Biden "presented this afternoon with upper respiratory symptoms, to include rhinorhea (runny nose) and non-productive cough, with general malaise." After the positive COVID-19 test, Biden was prescribed the antiviral drug Paxlovid and has taken his first dose, O'Connor said.
Has Biden tested positive for COVID-19 before?
Biden tested positive for COVID-19 in July 2022 and a second time slightly more than three days after he was cleared to exit coronavirus isolation. The second incident was a rare case of "rebound" infection following treatment with an anti-viral drug.
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Has Biden received the COVID-19 vaccine?
Biden received the updated COVID-19 vaccine and annual flu shot, the White House said last September.
COVID-19 cases are rising in some areas
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been upticks in emergency room visits and hospitalizations from COVID-19. There has also been a pronounced increase in positive test results in much of the country — particularly the southwestern U.S.
Given that the pandemic was declared officially over as of May 5, 2023, public health officials don’t collect the same amount of COVID data as they once did.
Does COVID spread more in summer?
Since COVID-19 emerged in 2020, scientists have learned that the virus has seasonal patterns, Varma said, with predictable peaks in spring/early summer and winter.
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"Winter peaks are easy to explain — more people spend time indoors, and there are changes in the climate, including relative humidity, that make it easier for infections to spread through the air," Varma, who served as the New York City mayor's senior adviser for public health during the COVID-19 pandemic, told Fox News Digital.
It’s not quite as easy, however, to explain the peak during warmer weather.
"It may be because the virus evolves at a frequency that aligns with the spring/summer — or there could be other environmental factors that we do not understand well," Varma said.
Should you get a fall vaccine?
As of June 27, the CDC recommends that all people 6 months of age and older get updated 2024-2025 COVID vaccines when they become available in fall 2024.
The updated vaccine will target the new, prevalent subvariants.
FOX News and The Associated Press contributed to this report. This story was reported from Los Angeles.