White House Physician Claims Trump’s Exposure to Coronavirus Constitutes ‘LOW Risk,’ No Testing, Quarantine Necessary
Photo credit: Jim Watson, AFP/Getty Images
The White House press office released a statement just before midnight on Friday from President Donald Trump’s physician, claiming that the interactions Trump had with two people who now test positive for coronavirus present a “LOW risk” of infection for the president, and that there is no need for him to be tested or quarantined.
JUST IN: White House puts out memo from Trump’s physician saying his exposure to two people who developed coronavirus doesn’t require self-quarantine or a test. pic.twitter.com/A0zIXM5gfL
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 14, 2020
In the official memo, Dr. Sean Conley explained that Trump came into contact with two people — unidentified in the memo, but believed to have been part of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s delegation — at a Mar-A-Lago dinner last weekend (pictured above), both of whom have since been diagnosed as having COVID-19.
“The president’s exposure to the first individual was extremely limited (photograph, handshake) and through he spent more time in closer proximity to the second case, all interactions occurred before any symptom onset,” Conley wrote. “These interactions would be categorized as LOW risk for transmission per CDC guidelines, and as such, there is not indication for home quarantine at this time.”
“Additionally, given the President himself remains without symptoms, testing for COVID-19 is not currently indicated,” Conley continued, ruling out the need for a test at this time. “I will continue to closely monitor and care for the President and will update you as more information becomes available.”
This diagnosis, is should be noted, seems to contradict the advice of Dr. Anthony Fauci, the Trump administration’s infectious diseases expert. Earlier on Friday, Fauci strongly suggested that someone of Trump’s age, which would put him in a “higher risk” category, who has also had multiple exposures to potentially infected individuals should be both immediately tested and isolated from others to prevent the possible spread of the virus.
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