“We are not yet on a clear path to a full recovery,” Meadows said wearily.
It was a dramatically different picture than the one painted by White House staff since Trump revealed his diagnosis, as well as by his doctors, who updated the public at a press conference at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
The briefing by Navy Commander Dr. Sean Conley and other physicians raised more questions than it answered, as Conley repeatedly declined to say whether the President ever needed supplemental oxygen, despite repeated questioning, and he refused to discuss exactly when he got sick. Conley also revealed that Trump began displaying “clinical indications” for COVID-19 on Thursday afternoon, earlier than was previously known.
“Thursday without oxygen. None at this time. And yesterday with the team, while we were all here, he was not on oxygen, “Conley said.
But according to a person familiar with Trump’s condition, Trump was administered oxygen at the White House on Friday before being transferred to the military hospital. The person was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
Conley said Trump’s symptoms, including a cough and nasal congestion, “are now resolving and improving,” and said the president had been fever-free for 24 hours. But Trump is also taking aspirin, which lowers body temperature and could mask or mitigate that. symptom.
“He’s in a really good mood,” said another doctor, Sean Dooley.
Trump is 74 years old and clinically obese, putting him at higher risk for serious complications from a virus that has infected more than 7 million people nationwide and killed more than 200,000 in the US.
White House officials, including Meadows, had insisted on Friday that Trump had only “mild symptoms” as they tried to project an image of normalcy.
“President Trump is still in good spirits, has mild symptoms and has been working all day,” said press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, who said Trump had only been sent to Walter Reed as a precautionary measure.
The Trump administration has been less than transparent to the public during the pandemic, both about the president’s health and about the spread of the virus within the White House. The first word that a close associate of Trump had been infected came from the media, not the White House. And aides have repeatedly refused to share basic health information, including a full account of the president’s symptoms, tests that have been performed, and results.
In a memo posted Friday night, Conley reported that Trump had been treated in hospital with remdesivir, an antiviral drug, after taking another experimental drug at the White House.
Conley declined to say when Trump was last tested before he was confirmed to have COVID-19 on Thursday night. It initially suggested that Trump was 72 hours after diagnosis, which would mean she was confirmed infected on Wednesday. Conley later clarified that Trump was administered an accurate test for the virus Thursday afternoon, after White House aide Hope Hicks was confirmed to be positive and Trump showed unspecified “clinical indications” of the virus. virus.
The White House said Trump was expected to stay in the hospital for “a few days” and that he would continue to work from the hospital’s presidential suite, which is equipped to allow him to fulfill his official duties. In addition to accessibility to tests and equipment, the decision was made, at least in part, on the understanding that transferring him to the hospital later, if he got worse, could send a worrisome signal.
On Saturday, Conley said Trump’s blood oxygen level is 96%, which is in the normal range. The two experimental drugs you have received, administered intravenously, have shown promise against COVID-19. On Friday, he was administered a single dose of a drug that Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. is testing to deliver antibodies that help his immune system fight the virus.
On Friday night, he began a five-day treatment with remdesivir, a Gilead Sciences drug currently used for patients with moderate and severe illnesses. Medications work in different ways: Antibodies help the immune system remove the virus from the body, and remdesivir slows the virus’ ability to multiply.
“We are maximizing all aspects of your care,” attacking the virus in multiple ways, Conley said. “She didn’t want to withhold anything if there was any chance it would add value to her attention.”
At the same time, the White House has been working to track a series of new infections from Trump aides and close allies. The focus is in particular on last Saturday’s White House event in which Trump’s candidate for the Supreme Court was introduced. That day, Trump gathered more than 150 people in the Rose Garden, where they mingled, hugged and shook hands, overwhelmingly without masks. There were also several indoor receptions, where Trump-chosen Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, his family, senators and others spent time in the confined spaces of the White House, photos show.
Among those who attended and now tested positive: Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, White House Counselor Kellyanne Conway, the President of the University of Notre Dame, and at least two Republican legislators: Utah Sen. Mike Lee and the Senator from North Carolina. Thom Tillis.
Despite its inability to protect the president and senior staff from infection, the White House still did not appear to be taking the highly infectious disease as seriously as possible.
Meadows, the chief of staff, accompanied the president to the hospital in Marine One, the kind of small, enclosed space where experts say the virus spreads easily.
And while Vice President Mike Pence is currently out of the election campaign preparing for the vice presidential debate next week, he and his staff are operating with a “business as usual” approach. He still plans to travel to Arizona on Thursday, Indiana on Friday and Florida on Saturday for events instead of isolating himself after possible exposure and to protect himself from contracting the virus elsewhere.
This story has been published from a news agency feed with no changes to the text. Only the title has been changed.
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