Fact Check: Has Joe Biden Had COVID-19?
U.S. vice president Kamala Harris has tested positive for COVID-19. Has Joe Biden had it?
Apr. 27 2022, Published 6:49 a.m. ET
The COVID-19 pandemic seems far from over, with new variants popping up and cases soaring. Several members of Joe Biden's administration have been infected with coronavirus in 2022.
The most recent addition to that list is vice president Kamala Harris. Has Biden had COVID-19?
Biden hasn't been in close contact with Harris
Harris is asymptomatic but will work from her official residence for now. Her press secretary, Kirsten Allen, said, “She has not been a close contact to the President or First Lady due to their respective recent travel schedules. She will follow CDC guidelines and the advice of her physicians. The Vice President will return to the White House when she tests negative.”
However, some of Biden’s other close aides have been infected with COVID-19, including commerce secretary Gina Raimondo and agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack in April, and White House press secretary Jen Psaki and deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in March. Jean-Pierre had traveled with Biden to Europe that month.
Nancy Pelosi was also infected with COVID
House secretary Nancy Pelosi was also infected with COVID-19 in April. Two days before she tested positive, Biden had kissed her at a crowded White House event. Two of Biden’s sisters also contracted COVID-19.
Has Biden had COVID-19?
So far, Biden hasn’t reported positive for COVID-19, and he tests regularly for the virus. Unlike his predecessor, Donald Trump, Biden has been supportive of and practices COVID-19 measures, such as wearing a mask.
Biden accidentally implied he had contracted COVID-19
Speaking on Equal Pay Day, Biden mistakenly said “the first lady’s husband contracted COVID.” He had meant to refer to vice president Harris’s husband and the second gentlemen, Douglas Craig Emhoff. Biden later corrected himself and added that Harris was fine.
Is Biden vaccinated?
Among the world leaders who see COVID-19 as a major threat, Biden has been vaccinated and has received two boosters. He was was in quarantine for two months in 2020 before appearing publicly on Memorial Day.
Could Biden contract COVID-19?
Officials have said that it's “possible” that Biden might also get infected. White House COVID-19 response coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha said, "The bottom line is he is vaccinated and boosted. He is very well protected. He's got very good protocols around him to protect him from getting infected. But there is no 100 percent anything.”
