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The White House announced in a statement Wednesday evening that Vice President Kamala was in contact with a staffer who has tested positive with the coronavirus but has tested negative herself.
“It is in the public’s interest to know if any of the four principals [President, Vice President, First Lady, and Second Gentleman] are considered to have been in close contact with a White House official who subsequently tested positive for COVID-19 shortly after that contact,” the statement said. “The criteria for what is considered a ‘close contact’ with the principals is determined by the White House Medical Unit, in line with CDC guidance.”
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris speaking about migrants heading to the U.S. at a news conference with Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei during her visit to Guatemala City, Guatemala June 7, 2021. REUTERS/Carlos Barria ( REUTERS/Carlos Barria)
The statement continued, “On Wednesday morning, a staff member who staffed the Vice President throughout the day Tuesday received a positive test result for COVID-19. Yesterday, Monday and every day last week, this staff member tested negative for COVID-19. This staff member is fully vaccinated and boosted and did not experience symptoms. Others who were in close contact with this staff member are being contacted and will be advised to get tested per CDC guidance.”
The White House added that the vice president is tested on a “regular basis.”
President Biden answers questions after speaking about the status of the country’s fight against COVID-19 and the Omicron variant, in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, on Dec. 21, 2021. (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images) (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
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President Biden also had a “close contact” with a staff member who has tested positive for COVID-19, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement on Monday.
“On Monday morning, a mid-level staff member, who does not regularly have contact with the President, received a positive result for a COVID-19 test,” Psaki said in a statement. ” Three days earlier, on Friday, that staff member had spent approximately 30 minutes in proximity to the President on Air Force One, on the way from Orange, South Carolina to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.”
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during an interview with The Los Angeles Times in her ceremonial office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House Complex on Friday, Dec. 17, 2021 in Washington. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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The White House revealed that the staff member who tested positive and was in contact with Biden “is fully vaccinated and boosted, and tested negative prior to boarding Air Force One, as is required for everyone traveling with the President. This staff member did not begin to experience symptoms until Sunday, and was tested on Monday.”
Harris was in the Oval Office with Biden on Tuesday morning, per her White House schedule.
Fox News’ Tyler O’Neil contributed to this report