xi's moments
Home | Americas

Three key US coronavirus officials in self-quarantine after COVID-19 exposure: Reports

Updated: 2020-05-10 10:21

White House coronavirus task force members, including Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health, White House coronavirus coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Director Robert Redfield and US Surgeon General Jerome Adams listen to US President Donald Trump during the daily coronavirus disease (COVID-19) briefing at the White House in Washington, April 22, 2020. [Photo/Agencies]

Three key US officials guiding the coronavirus response were in self-quarantine on Saturday after coming into contact with someone who had tested positive for COVID-19, according to a spokesman and media reports.

Anthony Fauci, a high profile member of the White House coronavirus response team, is beginning a "modified quarantine" according to a report on CNN. Fauci, who is 79 years old, is the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).

Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Robert Redfield "will be teleworking for the next two weeks" after a "low-risk exposure" on Wednesday to a person at the White House who has the disease, the Washington Post reported on Saturday, citing a spokesman. Redfield is 68 years old.

US President Donald Trump listens as Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn addresses the daily coronavirus task force briefing at the White House in Washington, April 21, 2020. [Photo/Agencies]

US Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn, who is 60, is in self-quarantine for a couple of weeks after coming into contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, an FDA spokesman told Reuters late on Friday.

Hahn immediately took a diagnostic test for the coronavirus and the results were negative, FDA spokesman Michael Felberbaum said in an emailed statement.

"As Dr. Hahn wrote in a note to staff today, he recently came into contact with an individual who has tested positive for COVID-19. Per CDC guidelines, he is now in self-quarantine for the next two weeks," the FDA spokesman said.

Politico reported Hahn had come into contact with Katie Miller, US-Vice President Mike Pence's press secretary.

Miller, the wife of one of President Donald Trump's senior advisers, tested positive on Friday, raising alarm about the virus' potential spread within the White House's innermost circle.

The diagnosis of Miller, who is married to White House immigration adviser and speech writer Stephen Miller, was revealed by Trump in a meeting with Republican lawmakers on Friday. A valet for Vice-President Mike Pence has also tested positive.

The White House declined to comment on any possible Fauci quarantine.

A representative for NIAID did not respond to a request for comment.

Reuters

Global Edition
BACK TO THE TOP
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349