US Vice President Mike Pence in self-isolation after aide tests positive for coronavirus COVID-19
US Vice President Mike Pence has placed himself in self-isolation after one of his close aides tested positive for the coronavirus COVID-19 last week. Pence’s spokesman Devin O’Malley told the media that the US Vice President has voluntarily decided to limit his exposure to other people. It is learnt that Pence has tested negative for the deadly virus but he decided to go in self-isolation following the advice of medical officials.
“Vice President Pence will continue to follow the advice of the White House Medical Unit and is not in quarantine. Additionally, Vice President Pence has tested negative every single day and plans to be at the White House tomorrow,” said spokesman O’Malley.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a leading member of the White House coronavirus task force, along with Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, Dr. Stephen Hahn, has decided to go in self-isolation over the weekend, .
Pence’s press secretary tested positive for COVID-19 on May 8, becoming the second person working at the White House complex to test positive for the highly contagious virus in the last week. It is to be noted that Pence led the White House coronavirus task force for more than two months. On Wednesday, a member of the military serving as one of Trump’s valets had tested positive for the coronavirus.
US President Donald Trump said that he ‘not worried’ about the news that Pence’s spokeswoman Katie Miller has tested positive for the coronavirus and the virus spreading in the White House. He, however, added that White House officials have been asked to step up safety protocols for the complex.
Meanwhile, the number of people infected globally by the coronavirus by Sunday evening surged to 41.52 lakh while the global pandemic has now killed over 2.82 lakh people.
As per the Worldometers website’s COVID-19 data at 11:30 PM IST, around 41,52,870 people have been infected with the coronavirus across the world, and over 2,82,660 have lost their lives.
The COVID-19 confirmed cases on Sunday saw a surge of 54,590 cases. The number of recoveries also increased to 14.65 lakh.
