President Donald Trump has confirmed during a Saturday news conference that he has been tested for the coronavirus, but does not have the results yet.
“Whatever it takes. A day or two days. Whatever it is. They send it to a lab,” Trump said about the tests.
READ MORE: US to suspend all travel to UK & Ireland from Monday night over coronavirus
NEW: Pres. Trump says he was tested for COVID-19 after being pressed on whether he would take it after meeting with Brazilian official who reportedly tested positive for the virus. “I decided I should based on the press conference yesterday.” https://t.co/kAUWcu0Kk0pic.twitter.com/XJbBQRdfqY
— ABC News (@ABC) March 14, 2020
Trump’s test follows the release of a statement from White House physician Sean P. Conley on Friday saying the president was at “low risk” of contracting the disease, despite interacting with two people who have become confirmed cases.
“I will do it anyway,” the president told reporters on Friday, after being asked about his interaction with Brazilian Press Secretary Fabio Wajngarten’s aide, who has tested positive for the coronavirus, at a delegation at Mar-a-Lago.
JUST IN: White House puts out memo from Trump’s physician saying his exposure to two people who developed coronavirus doesn’t require self-quarantine or a test. pic.twitter.com/A0zIXM5gfL
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) March 14, 2020
Trump said he taken the test “based on the press conference” on Friday where he was asked multiple times about whether he was concerned about contracting coronavirus arising from the delegation at which he’d interacted with the two now-confirmed cases.
The president said on Friday he was “not concerned” over his risk of contracting the disease and the interactions were minimal.
“We did nothing very unusual. We sat next to each other for a period of time and had a great conversation,” he said.
Speaking after Trump, Vice President Mike Pence revealed he has not been tested for Covid-19, but he and his wife will be meeting with the White House physician’s office on Saturday afternoon, and they’re both “happy to be tested.”
Also on rt.com Brazil’s Bolsonaro says he tested NEGATIVE for Covid-19 despite reports
Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro, who was also at the delegation, said he has tested negative for the coronavirus, despite local media initially reporting otherwise.
There are currently 2,195 confirmed cases of the virus within the US and 49 deaths from it, according to Saturday’s press conference.
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