Boris Johnson admitted to hospital for Covid-19 tests after coronavirus symptoms ‘persist’

“On the advice of his doctor, the Prime Minister has tonight been admitted to hospital for tests,” Downing Street said in a statement on Sunday evening. “This is a precautionary step,” the statement continued, “as the Prime Minister continues to have persistent symptoms of coronavirus ten days after testing positive for the virus.”

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Johnson has worked from isolation since he was diagnosed with the illness, and described himself as “feeling better” on Friday. The PM has communicated with the public by video clips filmed on his phone, and looked visibly ill throughout the week. At a press conference shortly before Johnson was admitted to hospital, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the British leader was “Okay.”

Johnson is not the only high-ranking political figure in the UK to catch the coronavirus. Prince Charles was diagnosed with Covid-19 several days before Johnson, and emerged from self-isolation last week as his health improved. Hancock was also diagnosed with the illness, while Downing Street Advisor Dominic Cummings entered isolation late last month after developing symptoms.

Nearly 48,000 Brits have contracted the illness, while 621 new fatalities since Friday brought the country’s death toll to 5,903. The British government is preparing for a possible peak in casualties next weekend, and Queen Elizabeth II warned the public on Sunday that Britain “may have more still to endure.” 

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Before his own diagnosis, Johnson issued a stark declaration to the British public in mid-March. Describing the pandemic as “the worst public health crisis for a generation,” the Prime Minister warned that “many more families are going to lose loved ones before their time.”

Delivered before the UK shuttered down businesses and ordered citizens to remain at home, Johnson’s warning stirred accusations of insensitivity and tone-deafness. As infections began to rise, and even after a lockdown was implemented, critics continued to hammer the Prime Minister for his speech, comparing it unfavorably beside the more compassionate tone struck by the UK’s neighbors.

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