Senator Elizabeth Warren tests positive for Covid-19 after vaccine and booster
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.Senator Elizabeth Warren has tested positive for Covid-19, the 72-year-old Massachusetts Democrat has revealed.
Sen. Warren tweeted on Sunday: “I regularly test for Covid and while I tested negative earlier this week, today I tested positive with a breakthrough case.”
“Thankfully, I am only experiencing mild symptoms and am grateful for the protection provided against serious illness that comes from being vaccinated and boosted.”
Her positive result comes about 18 months after her brother died of coronavirus.
She tweeted: “As cases increase across the country, I urge everyone who has not already done so to get the vaccine and the booster as soon as possible together, we can save lives.”
As cases increase across the country, I urge everyone who has not already done so to get the vaccine and the booster as soon as possible - together, we can save lives. https://t.co/lyVapoCE3A
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) December 19, 2021
Her exposure to the virus could potentially mean that other senators or their staff could suffer infections as well, given that Ms Warren was on the floor of the Senate in recent days for a marathon late-night session in which the upper chamber confirmed dozens of President Joe Biden’s nominees, including that of former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel as ambassador to Japan.
Ms Warren’s positive diagnosis is also a sign of the continued infectiousness of the virus; she is fully vaccinated, including a booster shot, and still facing mild symptoms.
The Biden administration has been redoubling its efforts to encourage vaccinations and booster shots in recent days given the onset of the Omicron variant, which is thought to be more infectious that some previous iterations of Covid-19 while possibly resulting in milder symptoms.
Hospitals around the US are, meanwhile, reporting the same phenomenon over and over: The vast majority of hospitalisations and deaths, which continue to overwhelm healthcare systems in municipalities across the country, are among unvaccinated Americans who face a much greater risk of severe symptoms from the virus than do their vaccinated neighbors.
The US is facing a new wave of Covid-19 infections, attributed largely to the spread of the Omicron variant as well as the onset of winter weather. The country is averaging more than 125,000 new cases per day as of this weekend, and the rate of new cases is continuing to grow.
News of Ms Warren’s diagnosis comes just about 24 hours after it was reported by multiple local news outlets that an outspoken Washington state senator who opposed Covid-19 vaccine mandates had died after contracting the virus.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments