U.S. President Donald Trump “is no longer considered a transmission risk” in spreading the novel coronavirus to others, according to a statement from his doctor.
In a letter Saturday, the president’s personal doctor Sean P. Conley said that Trump met the Centers for Disease Control criteria for the “safe discontinuation of isolation,” and that he was not able to infect others with COVID-19 according to current standards.
“Now at day 10 from symptom onset fever-free for well over 24 hours and all symptoms improved, the assortment of advanced diagnostic tests obtained reveal there is no longer evidence of actively replicating virus.”
The announcement comes 10 days after the president and first lady Melania Trump revealed that they were infected with the coronavirus, and just five days after he returned to the White House after being hospitalized.
Since Trump’s diagnosis, multiple cases of the virus were confirmed among those who were in close contact with the president or with his close advisor, Hope Hicks, whose own diagnosis had prompted the test that confirmed he had the virus.
Among those were former counsellor to the president Kellyanne Conway, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, senior Trump advisor Stephen Miller and Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien, as well as several White House aides and journalists.
Many of those infected attended the Sept. 26 White House Rose Garden event where Trump announced his nomination for Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court and several more were also involved in setting up the president’s debate with Joe Biden on Sept. 29.
Earlier Saturday, Trump had also made his first public appearance since his treatment, speaking to a crowd of hundreds on the South Lawn of the White House — and defying public health guidelines.
Yet the doctor’s letter did not confirm whether the president had tested negative for the virus. Since his return from the Walter Reed Medical Center, White House officials have refused to reveal whether the president has tested negative or was still at risk of transmitting the virus to others.
— With files from Global News’ Sean Boynton and The Associated Press.