Vice President Mike Pence and his wife, Second Lady Karen Pence, have both tested negative for COVID-19, his press secretary announced Saturday night.
“Pleased to report that the COVID-19 test results came back negative for both Vice President @Mike_Pence and Second Lady @KarenPence,” Katie Miller tweeted.
Pleased to report that the COVID-19 test results came back negative for both Vice President @Mike_Pence and Second Lady @KarenPence.
— Katie Miller (@VPPressSec) March 22, 2020
Pence earlier Saturday said he will be tested for the coronavirus, after one of his staffers tested positive for the virus earlier this week.
“While the White House doctor has indicated that he has no reason to believe I was exposed and no need to be tested, given the unique position i have as vice president and as leader of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, both I and my wife will be tested for the coronavirus later this afternoon,” he said at a White House press briefing.
Pence’s office said Friday that the unidentified staffer tested positive. Pence said that the staffer is doing well, and had cold-like symptoms for a day and a half and has not been to the White House since Monday.
He said that neither he nor President Trump had any contact with the staffer, and that they had worked with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the White House. Contact tracing had also been done, he said.
Pence was appointed by Trump to lead the White House’s coronavirus task force, which has been holding daily press briefings on the virus.
A number of politicians have tested positive for the virus. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., on Wednesday became the first member of Congress to announce that he was infected. Not long after Diaz-Balart’s announcement, Rep. Ben McAdams, D-Utah, announced that he, too, had tested positive.
A week ago, Trump took a coronavirus test — after exposure to infected individuals — but said it came back negative.
Author: Adam Shaw, Melissa Leon
Source: The Hill: Vice President Pence, wife test negative for COVID-19