Fauci will go into “modified quarantine” after coming into contact with an unnamed White House staffer who tested positive for coronavirus
By Peter Wade
Dr. Anthony Fauci will go into “modified quarantine” after coming into contact with an unnamed White House staffer who tested positive for the coronavirus.
A member of the White House’s coronavirus task force told CNN that the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases’ contact with the staffer was deemed “low risk,” which is measured by proximity, and he will self-quarantine for two weeks.
Fauci will work from home, wear a mask and may go to the NIH office during the two-week self-quarantine, he told CBS News, because no one else will be there. The doctor also said he will attend his scheduled appearance before the Senate on Tuesday, if asked, and will wear a mask and abide by social distancing guidelines.
The doctor joins other top federal health officials who are currently self-isolating.
Stephen Hahn, the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration is self-quarantining for two weeks after, according to Politico, he had come into contact with Vice President Mike Pence’s press secretary Katie Miller. The secretary, who tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday, is the wife of President Trump’s senior advisor Stephen Miller and is often in close proximity to the president. Politico went on to report that Hahn is asymptomatic and tested negative for the virus on Friday.
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CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield is also under self-quarantine for two weeks after he was exposed to a person at the White House who tested positive for the virus.
A spokesperson for the director released a statement saying, “CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield has been determined to have had a low risk exposure on May 6 to a person at the White House who has COVID-19. He is feeling fine, and has no symptoms. He will be teleworking for the next two weeks. In the event Dr. Redfield must go to the White House to fulfill any responsibilities as part of WHTF on COVID-19 he will be following CDC Safety Practices for Critical Infrastructure Workers Who May Have Had Exposure to a Person with Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19.”
Saturday’s news comes on the heels of one of Donald Trump’s personal valets testing positive for the virus. Following that revelation, NBC News reported that the president had become “lava level mad” at his staff and expressed doubt in their competency to protect him.
It’s a feeling that most Americans likely can relate to with Trump’s mismanagement of the ongoing pandemic crisis.