Pelosi spokesperson tests positive for COVID
A vaccinated spokesperson for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has tested positive for COVID-19, her office said Tuesday.
The staffer received the positive result on Monday after meeting with members of the Texas state legislature last week, said Drew Hammill, Pelosi’s deputy chief of staff.
Hammill said that the staffer has not had contact with the 81-year-old congresswoman since the exposure.
“The entire Press Office is working remotely today with the exception of individuals who have had no exposure to the individual or have had a recent negative test,” Hammill said in a statement.
A vaccinated White House official also tested positive on Monday, said Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary. She said Tuesday that the official was experiencing mild symptoms.
“The White House medical unit has conducted contact tracing interviews and determined no close contacts among White House principals or staff or the president,” Psaki said at a news briefing. “We know that there will be breakthrough cases.”
According to Axios, which previously reported the positive tests, the White House official attended a reception with the Pelosi staffer.
Though breakthrough cases have cropped up recently among vaccinated people, including multiple New York Yankees, the cases are rare.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, President Biden’s chief coronavirus adviser, said Friday that “certainly, we are seeing them, but you’ve got to remember what the denominator of the vaccinated people are.”
