President Joe Biden tested positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday while he was in Las Vegas for a series of events, the White House said.
In a statement, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden tested positive “following his first event in Las Vegas.”
“He is vaccinated and boosted and he is experiencing mild symptoms,” Jean-Pierre said. “He will be returning to Delaware where he will self-isolate and will continue to carry out all of his duties fully during that time. The White House will provide regular updates on the President’s status as he continues to carry out the full duties of the office while in isolation.”
Biden was already scheduled to head to Delaware after his trip to Las Vegas.
Biden was tested after he experienced upper respiratory symptoms, Biden’s doctor said in a statement released by the White House. Dr. Kevin O’Connor is the president’s physician; the White House did not attribute the statement to him by name.Biden’s symptoms included a runny nose, nonproductive cough and “general malaise,” the statement said.
His doctor said he has already taken his first dose of Paxlovid, a medication that is associated with reducing the chance of hospitalization or death.
Biden does not have a fever, and his respiratory rate is normal, according to the doctor.
When Biden arrived later at the Las Vegas-area airport, he responded to a question about how he was feeling by saying, “Good, I feel good.”
En route to Delaware, Biden tweeted, "I'm sick." He followed it up two minutes later with a post saying, "of Elon Musk and his rich buddies trying to buy this election," with a link to donate to his re-election campaign. Musk endorsed former President Donald Trump moments after Saturday's assassination attempt.
Biden, 81, has kept a full schedule in Nevada this week after questions were raised about his health and capabilities after a dismal debate performance in late June.
Both Biden and Trump, 78, have had Covid. Biden last tested positive in 2022. Trump tested positive in 2020.
News of Biden’s Covid test was announced at the conference where he was scheduled to speak Wednesday.
“Regrettably, I was just on the phone with President Biden, and he shared his deep disappointment at not being able to join us this afternoon. The president has been at many events, as we all know, and he just tested positive for Covid," said Janet Murguía, president of UnidosUS, which bills itself as the largest Latino advocacy organization in U.S.
Biden, who had been expected to speak at the group's event in Las Vegas, was about an hour and a half late before the announcement was made.
Top campaign officials Jen O'Malley Dillon and Julie Chavez Rodriguez informed campaign staff members of the Covid test in a 6:40 p.m. ET email.
"The president is doing fine and looking forward to being back on the campaign trail as soon as he is COVID free," the email said.
Biden said in an interview with BET on Tuesday that he would drop out of the presidential race if he developed a medical condition that prevented him from running.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in March that people who test positive for Covid no longer need to isolate for five days.
The CDC's latest guidance recommends that people who test positive stay home and away from others, noting that people can resume normal activity after symptoms are improving and there is no fever without "fever-reducing medication" for at least 24 hours.
The CDC encourages people to continue to wear masks and maintain distance from others for five days after they resume regular activities.
Biden was not wearing a mask as he walked to Air Force One after having tested positive; neither were the staff members boarding with him.
