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US President Donald Trump is no longer a Covid transmission risk to others, the White House doctor said.
The Sean Conley memo is the first update on Trump’s health since Thursday.
Earlier on Saturday, the president delivered a speech in front of cheering supporters at the White House in his first public appearance since he was hospitalized with the virus.
There were concerns that he could still be contagious after his three-day stay in the hospital.
The doctor’s memo said the latest tests on the president revealed that “there was no longer evidence that the virus was actively replicating” and that his viral load was “decreasing.”
However, the statement did not say whether Trump had tested negative for Covid-19.
- The latest on Trump’s health in six charts
In the memo, Dr. Conley said that President Trump had undergone sensitive lab tests that detect how much virus is still in his system.
“Tonight I am pleased to report that in addition to the president’s meeting [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] Based on the criteria for safe isolation interruption, this morning’s Covid PCR sample demonstrates, by currently recognized standards, that it is no longer considered a transmission risk to others, “he said.
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EPA
Dr. Conley (C), seen addressing reporters while Trump was in hospital, said the president’s viral load was dropping
Trump began showing symptoms of coronavirus 10 days ago and was admitted to Walter Reed Medical Center a day later, on October 2.
While there, he was treated with, among other medications, dexamethasone, a steroid drug generally only used in people who are seriously or critically ill with the virus.
Dr. Conley’s latest update comes after President Trump told a crowd at an event at the White House that he was “feeling great.” He has also said that he no longer takes any Covid-19 drugs.
Saturday’s event was officially a “peaceful protest,” but critics said it looked a lot like a Trump campaign rally.
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His rival in next month’s presidential election, Joe Biden, has been campaigning in Pennsylvania. He said that his “heart goes out to all those families who have lost a loved one to the coronavirus.”
The poll suggests that Biden has a single-digit lead over Trump and an ABC News / Ipsos poll found that only 35% of Americans approved of how Trump has handled the coronavirus crisis.
More than 214,000 Americans are known to have died from Covid-19.
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What were the concerns about the event?
Questions about safety arose after a meeting to present Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court resulted in at least 11 people testing positive for Covid-19, including the president. America’s leading infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, described it as “a wide-spread event.”
Senior Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff said it was “morally bankrupt” for the president to hold “another super broadcast rally” at the White House..
The White House said ahead of Saturday’s event that attendees will have to undergo a temperature check and wear face masks, and they were encouraged to practice social distancing.
However, footage from the event showed several hundred people close together.
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Reuters
While most of the crowd wore masks, there seemed to be little social distancing
The president’s campaign team has also said it plans to attend a “big rally” in Florida, a battleground state in next month’s presidential election, on Monday, followed by trips to Pennsylvania and Iowa.
Biden expressed disbelief at the president’s plans to hold rallies and criticized the Trump administration’s lax stance on wearing masks as reckless.
“He wouldn’t show up unless he has a mask on and can distance himself,” Biden said, speaking while campaigning in Las Vegas on Friday.
Meanwhile, ethicists say hosting political events at the White House, in addition to being against a long-standing convention in the United States, could violate federal law.
The Hatch Act, which dates back to 1939, prohibits federal employees from participating in campaign activities while on duty. While the president and vice president are exempt, most White House employees are not.
On Thursday, Sean Conley said it would be safe for Trump to return to public engagements on Saturday. [10 October] since it would mark “day 10” from his diagnosis on Thursday, October 1.
Following his diagnosis, Trump spent three nights in the hospital and was treated with the steroid dexamethasone, the antiviral drug remdesivir and a cocktail of antibodies made by the Regeneron company.
- The latest on Trump’s health in six charts
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The CDC recommends self-isolation for at least 10 days after the first symptoms of the coronavirus appear, with a more serious illness, such as one requiring hospital treatment, potentially taking up to 20 days.
Recover lost time
Analysis by Lebo Diseko, BBC News, Washington
The White House says this was not a campaign event, but it looked and sounded remarkably like one.
Supporters were on the south lawn, yelling “Four more years! Four more years!” when the president came out to speak.
Black and Latino voters could be key in battle states like Michigan and Florida; both won by small percentage points in 2016.
The president seemed much more himself than in recent days.
This was him saying “I’m back” and restarting a campaign that has effectively stalled since his Covid diagnosis on October 1.
With the elections only a few weeks away, he is ready to make up for lost time.
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