First Lady Jill Biden has tested positive for COVID-19 in a rebound case, just days after she had tested negative.
President Joe Biden tested negative on Wednesday, but will mask for 10 days when indoors and close to others due to his close contact with his wife.
“After testing negative on Tuesday, just now, the First Lady has tested positive for COVID-19 by antigen testing,” according to a statement issued by her deputy communications director, Kelsey Donohue. “This represents a ‘rebound’ positivity.”
Jill Biden, 71, had initially tested positive for the virus on August 16 and was treated with the drug Paxlovid. She reportedly had “cold-like symptoms” during that time.
The Office of the First Lady said that she has not had new symptoms as of Wednesday.
“The First Lady has experienced no reemergence of symptoms, and will remain in Delaware where she has reinitiated isolation procedures,” Donohue’s statement continued. “The White House Medical Unit has conducted contact tracing and close contacts have been notified.”
The First Lady is double vaccinated and twice boosted.
On August 21, the First Lady tested negative and left isolation. She continued to test negative until August 23, but tested positive again on the 24th.
President Joe Biden had a similar “rebound” case in the days after being treated with Paxlovid for the virus last month. He ended up isolating for another week until the the second round was cleared.
The White House said that they will be testing the president more often during this time and keep the public updated on his results.
“Consistent with CDC guidance because he is a close contact of the First Lady, he will mask for 10 days when indoors and in close proximity to others,” according to the White House. “We will also keep the President’s testing cadence increased and continue to report those results.”
Jill Biden was scheduled to accompany her husband to a Democratic National Committee in Montgomery County, Maryland, on Thursday, but that has now been cancelled.
According to a report from CNN, Jill Biden will remain at the family beach house in Delaware until she once again has two consecutive negative test results.
