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US President Donald Trump is “very well” as he spends the weekend in a hospital after testing positive for coronavirus, his doctor says.
Dr. Sean Conley said that the president was not receiving additional oxygen for now and had been fever-free for 24 hours.
But conflicting reports have emerged suggesting concern for Trump’s health, the time he was diagnosed, or whether he ever received oxygen.
In exactly one month, Trump faces Joe Biden in the presidential election.
The positive diagnosis, made public by the president in a tweet on Friday, reversed his campaign and also cast doubt on his attempt to have a new Supreme Court judge confirmed before Election Day.
The president is expected to stay at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center near Washington DC for several days. Dr. Conley said he was “cautiously optimistic” but could not give a timetable for his discharge.
But the doctors’ assessment was contradicted by a person familiar with the president’s condition, who said that some of his vital signs over the past 24 hours were “very worrying” and that the next 48 hours would be critical. The source said that “we are not yet on a clear path to a full recovery.”
The 74-year-old president is a man and someone classified as obese is in a higher risk category for Covid-19. So far he has been treated with an experimental drug cocktail injection and the antiviral drug remdesivir.
Later, writing on Twitter, the President said, “The doctors, nurses and everyone at the great Walter Reed Medical Center, and others from equally amazing institutions that have joined them, are amazing … With your help, I I feel good!
What else did the doctors say?
Speaking at a news conference Saturday morning, Dr. Conley declined to say whether the president had ever taken oxygen despite being repeatedly questioned. “None at this time and yesterday with the team, while we were all here, he was not on oxygen.”
Shortly after, the Associated Press and New York Times reported, citing anonymous officials, that doctors had given the president supplemental oxygen at the White House on Friday before deciding to transfer him to Walter Reed.
Dr. Conley also said that some of the president’s symptoms, including a mild cough and nasal congestion, “are now resolving and improving,” adding: “At this time, the team and I are extremely happy with the progress that the president has succeeded. “
There was also some confusion after he said the team had “72 hours” on the president’s positive diagnosis which, if confirmed, would suggest that Trump attended two large campaign events possibly knowing he was infected. A White House official later clarified that the doctor meant “it’s the third day, not 72 hours.”
Another doctor, Sean Dooley, said Trump was “in an exceptionally good mood” and previously said, “I feel like I could get out of here today.”
First lady Melania Trump, who also tested positive for Covid-19, was “very well,” Dr. Conley said.
The list of other people who tested positive for Trump includes his close aide Hope Hicks, who is believed to be the first to show symptoms, campaign manager Bill Stepien and former White House adviser Kellyanne Conway. Republican Senators Mike Lee and Thom Tillis also tested positive.
Trump is still in charge. Vice President Mike Pence, to whom under the constitution the president would transfer power temporarily if he became too ill to perform his duties, tested negative.
More questions than answers
One might imagine that the purpose of the White House medical team press conference was to reassure the public that the president is doing well and that the nation’s leading medical experts are aware of the situation. Instead, they created more confusion.
Sean Conley said that President Trump was diagnosed “72 hours ago,” which would be Wednesday morning. That’s before the president traveled to Minnesota for a campaign rally that night, before flying to New Jersey for a fundraiser on Thursday, and more than 36 hours before the president revealed his coronavirus diagnosis to the world at a nightly tweet.
The timeline is further clouded by the revelation that the president received antiviral treatment sometime Thursday, also prior to his announcement.
Dr. Conley tried to paint a positive picture of the president’s current medical condition, although he was evasive about whether Trump had ever received oxygen to help him breathe. And then, a few minutes after the press conference ended, a White House official took a very different tone, telling the assembled press that “the president’s vital signs over the past 24 hours were very concerning.”
The White House and the president’s medical team have some explaining to do. They have since said that doctors were wrong, but that is unlikely to rule out concerns that the president knowingly put more people at risk by traveling when he knew he could have Covid-19.
What did the president look like on Friday?
Wearing a mask and suit, Trump crossed the White House lawn at 18:15 (22:15 GMT) on Friday to his helicopter, Marine One, for the short flight to the medical center.
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Reuters
Donald Trump arrives at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center
He waved and raised his thumb to reporters, but said nothing before boarding the plane.
In an 18-second video posted on Twitter, Trump said: “I think I’m doing very well. But we will make sure things work out. The first lady is doing very well. So thank you very much.”
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The president’s sons, Ivanka and Eric, retweeted his post, praising him as a “warrior.” Trump added: “I love you dad.”
Donald Jr. said his father “was obviously taking it very seriously.”
Trump was admitted to the presidential suite at Walter Reed, which is where US presidents usually have their annual check-up. Shortly before midnight, he tweeted again: “It’s going well, I think! Thank you all. LOVE !!!”
