FILE PHOTO: FS Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) Speaks to the First Chamber Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on Coronavirus Disease Response (COVID-19), in Washington, USA, May 12, 2020. Win McNamee / Pool via REUTERS
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy on Thursday tested positive for coronavirus, decided to take 14 days of self-quarantine and is in contact with those he can contact, according to a statement released by his office.
“I strictly follow the direction of our medical experts and strongly encourage others to do the same,” the Louisiana Republican, himself a physician, said in the statement.
At least 15 other members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the House of Representatives – eight Republicans and seven Democrats – have tested positive or are believed to have had COVID-19 since the new coronavirus pandemic began earlier this year.
Senator Rand Paul, a Republican, is the only other senator who has tested positive for the virus, back in March. Two other senators, Democrats Tim Kaine and Bob Casey, said in May that they were testing positive for coronavirus antibodies.
Both rooms are currently in session. In July, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi gave a mask mandate to the House floor after Representative Louie Gohmert, who often refused to wear a mask, tested positive. Elsewhere in the Capitol, mask wear is encouraged for legislators, but not mandated.
Report by David Morgan; Edited by Chizu Nomiyama
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