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Officials at the Washington, DC Department of Health have been unsuccessful in trying to connect with the White House to help with contact tracing and other protocols related to the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak that has infected President Donald Trump and several senior staff members.
“We have approached the White House on a couple of different levels, a political level and a public health level,” said Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser. She added that a representative from the DC health department who approached the White House “had a very superficial conversation that we do not consider substantial contact from the public health side.”
Alex Brandon / AP
President Donald Trump, center, with Justice Amy Coney Barrett as they arrive at a press conference to announce Barrett as their Supreme Court nominee, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington.
The lack of communication represents an unwanted obstacle for the DC government, which has worked to contain the spread of the virus through mandatory mask requirements and limits on the size of meetings.
Bowser acknowledged that White House medical officials “are very busy” right now. But a DC official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to comment on the record, said White House doctors have not informed the DC Department of Health of any positive test results, a necessary step. before contact tracing and quarantine can begin. .
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There have been multiple attempts to contact them, the official said.
The Bowser administration, which has publicly clashed with the Trump administration multiple times, is in a difficult position regarding the current outbreak. The Trump White House has operated for months in open violation of several DCs. virus regulations, hosting multiple gatherings that exceeded the local limit of 50 people and in which many participants did not wear masks.
A ceremony in the rose garden on September 26 to announce Trump’s nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court is now considered a potential “ super spread ” event, with several attendees, including the Reverend John Jenkins. , president of the University of Notre Dame, testing positive afterwards.
Jenkins flew in to attend the ceremony from Indiana, a state DC classified as a virus hotspot, meaning he was expected to be in quarantine for two weeks upon arrival.
Alex Brandon / AP
A member of the cleaning staff dressed in a protective suit, sprays the James Brady Briefing Room of the White House.
Washington’s local virus regulations don’t apply on federal property, but the current outbreak has blurred those distinctions. Members of Trump’s inner circle, such as former counselor Kellyanne Conway, who also tested positive, are DC residents, as are many of the employees, clerks, Secret Service members and journalists who have had close contact with infected officials.
But the Department of Health has been unable to perform contact tracing or any of the other normal protocols. Instead, it has been forced to entrust the White House medical staff to conduct its own contact tracing.
“There are public health protocols established in the White House that are federal in nature,” Bowser said. “We assume those protocols have been compromised.”
The White House said it had a “robust” contact tracing program and procedures that follow the specifications of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Alex Brandon / AP
A member of the cleaning staff sprays The James Brady Briefing Room of the White House.
Dr. LaQuandra Nesbit, head of the DC Department of Health, said the process must begin with an official notification from a medical professional.
“If we have been given that information … DC’s contact tracing force will do its job,” Nesbit said.
The situation has been further complicated by the apparent resistance of some senior Trump officials to voluntary quarantine and the inability of the DC government to force the issue. Attorney General William Barr, who was repeatedly seen in close contact with Conway and other infected people, said over the weekend that he would not limit their activities or movements. Today, he changed course and a spokesman said Barr would self-quarantine “for now.”
The CDC has repeatedly said it has a team ready to help the White House investigate how the outbreak unfolded. So far, the White House has not requested such assistance, but such an investigation could determine who started the outbreak and whether the spread occurred at the outdoor gathering or related indoor events or both, several infectious disease experts said. in a conference call with reporters.
J. Scott Applewhite / AP
US Secret Service police prepare for the return of President Donald Trump to the White House from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
“The tools are there to analyze what actually happened,” said Dr. Robert Schooley, an infectious disease specialist at UC San Diego School of Medicine.
Indoor propagation is easier, but those attending the Rose Garden ceremony sat very close together for an extended time, said Linsey Marr, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech. At this point, “I don’t think we can rule out let the broadcast happen outdoors, “Marr said.
White House spokesman Judd Deere said the White House “has established a robust contact tracing program led by the White House Medical Unit with integration from the CDC to provide appropriate recommendations.”
He said those who came into close contact with Trump would continue to be screened.
Bowser and Nesbit strove to avoid direct comment or criticism of the White House, perhaps seeking to avoid the appearance of politicizing the crisis.
Nesbit declined to comment specifically on the Rose Garden ceremony on September 26. But he spoke generally about everyone’s need to “make better decisions” in their personal and professional life.
“We have encouraged people to choose the activities they would go on wisely,” he said. “If someone were organizing an event where people were not going to wear face masks, where people were not going to be socially distant, they would choose to make better decisions about attending that event.
