Live updates: President Biden says he's 'doing great' after testing positive for COVID-19
AP Photo/Evan Vucci
- President Joe Biden tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday, the White House announced.
- The 79-year-old is fully vaccinated and has received two booster shots.
- This is the first time Biden has had the virus, and he is the second US president to come down with COVID-19.
President Joe Biden on Thursday tested positive for COVID-19, the White House announced.
This is the first time he has tested positive for the virus.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement that Biden, who tested positive on Thursday morning, is "experiencing very mild symptoms" and "has begun taking Paxlovid," an antiviral drug.
Biden received his first two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in December 2020 and January 2021, and received two Pfizer booster shots in September 2021 and March 2022, making his case a so-called breakthrough infection.
AP Photo/Andrew Harnik
Sen. Patrick Leahy is third-in-line for the presidency, but the 82-year-old DC veteran is recovering from hip surgery.
Leahy is 82, born on March 31, 1940, just five days after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is second in line to the presidency behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
Leahy is three years older than 79-year-old President Biden, who tested positive for COVID-19 Thursday.
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If Joe Biden is unable to perform the duties of the US president, there is a long list of people in line to take over.
However, if Biden becomes unable to serve, the Presidential Succession Act stipulates that the presidential line of succession goes down heads of Congress and then the president's cabinet.
The line of succession includes Vice President Kamala Harris, two members of Congress, and cabinet officials. Third in the line of succession is Sen. Patrick Leahy, 82, a Vermont Democrat and the president pro tempore of the Senate, who is recovering from a surgery he had on Tuesday after a hip replacement.
AP Photo/Evan Vucci
President Joe Biden said he is doing well following news of a positive COVID-19 test.
"Folks, I'm doing great. Thanks for your concern," the president tweeted Thursday.
"Just called Senator Casey, Congressman Cartwright, and Mayor Cognetti (and my Scranton cousins!) to send my regrets for missing our event today. Keeping busy!" he added alongside a photo of him in a suit at his desk.
—President Biden (@POTUS) July 21, 2022
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President Joe Biden was giving speeches, attending meetings, and traveling in the Middle East before his COVID-19 diagnosis on Thursday.
Thursday, July 14
Biden was on his second day of travel in Israel, where he held a press conference with Prime Minister Yair Lapid. The president also met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, along with leaders from India and the United Arab Emirates.
Friday, July 15
Biden gave a speech at a hospital in East Jerusalem, and also traveled to the West Bank and met with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
Biden then left for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where he met with King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Saturday, July 16
Biden was in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and attended a slew of meetings. The president returned to Washington, DC, late Saturday evening.
Sunday, July 17
Biden attended church at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Georgetown, and held no public events.
Monday, July 18
Biden held no public events.
Tuesday, July 19
First lady Jill Biden met with Ukrainian First lady Olena Zelenska at the White House, and Biden greeted upon her arrival.
Wednesday, July 20
Biden delivered remarks on climate change and clean energy from Brayton Point Power Station, a power plant in Somerset, Massachusetts.
Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images
President Joe Biden — who is fully boosted and vaccinated — tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday, becoming the second US president to get infected by the virus.
And as the country sees a steady rise in daily new COVID-19 infections, just 22.7% of Americans in his age bracket have kept up to date with their vaccination shots, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Biden, who is 79 years old, falls under the "65+ Years" category — which the CDC says consists of nearly 55 million Americans. Of that population, just 12.5 million have received their second booster shot.
MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images
Biden tested positive one day after traveling to Massachusetts and Rhode Island to discuss climate change, and four days after returning from an action-packed overseas trip to the Middle East.
Biden rode Air Force One to and from New England with Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey of Massachusetts, as well as Reps. Bill Keating and Jake Auchincloss.
On the ground, he appeared with elected officials including Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee and Sen. Sheldon White House of Rhode Island.
First Lady Jill Biden tested negative on Thursday morning, her office told Politico.
Vice President Kamala Harris, who previously recovered from a COVID-19 case in the spring, had no planned events on her schedule for Thursday.
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