White House: Biden negative for COVID-19 after close contact
The White House says President Joe Biden has tested negative for COVID-19
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.President Joe Biden has tested negative for COVID-19, the White House said Wednesday.
“This morning, President Biden received a PCR test and the test result was negative,” the White House press office said in a statement emailed to reporters, referring to a sensitive test used to detect the presence of coronavirus.
Biden had close contact on Air Force One last Friday with a staff member who later tested positive for the coronavirus and showed signs of COVID-19, the White House said.
That led to the further testing for the 79-year-old president, who is regularly tested for the coronavirus.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday that Biden had had two negative tests since Sunday, and would be tested again on Wednesday.
That's the test result came back negative.
Psaki said the staff member spent about 30 minutes around the president on the flight from Orangeburg, South Carolina, to Philadelphia, last Friday.
She said the staffer is fully vaccinated, had received a booster shot and had tested negative before boarding Air Force One.