Former President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump quietly received the Covid-19 vaccine at the White House in January, a Trump advisor told NBC News on Monday.
It is not clear which type of vaccine they received and they were not disclosed at the time by the Trump White House. The official White House photographer was also not present to document the event, according to an official with direct knowledge.
This news was first reported by The New York Times.
Trump, who spent months publicly downplaying the virus' impact and eschewing mask-wearing, announced in October that he had tested positive for Covid-19. The first lady also tested positive, but they both later recovered.
During his treatment, Trump received an experimental antibody cocktail. The CDC recommends patients wait at least 90 days after receiving the treatment before being vaccinated.
The former president, whose administration was criticized for its vaccine rollout plan, boasted during a speech Sunday at the Conservative Political Action Conference about how he pushed officials to get the vaccine developed under Operation Warp Speed. He also urged attendees to get the vaccine though he did not disclose he received the vaccine.
“We took a risk because if we didn’t do that, you still wouldn’t have the vaccines. You wouldn’t have them for a long time,” he said. He later added, “So everybody go get your shot.”
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden publicly received both doses of the Pfizer vaccine in an effort to boost confidence about its safety and efficacy. Then-Vice President Mike Pence was also vaccinated in December at a live event with the same goal.
In remarks after receiving the shot, Pence said he "wanted to step forward and take this vaccine to assure the American people that while we cut red tape, we cut no corners."
Three of Trump's predecessors, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, have also said they would receive their shots in public.
