Biden tests positive for Covid-19, has ‘very mild symptoms’ so far

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday and is experiencing "very mild symptoms," underscoring the persistence of the highly contagious virus as new variants challenge the nation's efforts to resume normalcy after two and a half years of pandemic disruptions.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden has begun taking Paxlovid, an antiviral drug designed to reduce the severity of the disease.

She said Biden has "very mild symptoms" and "will isolate at the White House while continuing to carry out all of his duties fully." She said Biden has been in contact with members of the White House staff by phone and will participate in his planned meetings at the White House "via phone and Zoom from the residence."

Biden, 79, is fully vaccinated, after getting two doses of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine shortly before taking office, a first booster shot in September and an additional dose March 30.

Jean-Pierre said Biden had last tested negative on Tuesday, and he will stay isolated until he tests negative again. Biden had planned to visit Pennsylvania on Thursday to talk about his crime prevention plans and attend a Democratic fundraiser, and then spend a long weekend in Delaware. Those events are canceled.

First lady Jill Biden spoke to reporters as she arrived at a school in Detroit on Thursday, telling them she had just gotten off the phone with her husband.

"He's doing fine," she said. "He's feeling good."

The first lady, who was wearing a mask, said she tested negative earlier in the day.

Up to this point, Biden's ability to avoid the virus seemed to defy the odds, even with the testing procedures in place for those expected to be in close contact with him. Prior waves of the virus swept through Washington's political class, infecting Vice President Kamala Harris, Cabinet members, White House staffers and lawmakers. Biden has increasingly stepped up his travel schedule and resumed holding large indoor events where not everyone is tested.

Top White House officials in recent months have been matterof-fact about the likelihood of the president getting Covid, a measure of how engrained the virus has become in society — and of its diminished threat for those who are up to date on their vaccinations and with access to treatments.