US President Joe Biden ended his Covid isolation on Wednesday, telling jubilant aid workers that his speedy recovery from the infection should inspire Americans to take advantage of free vaccines and treatments.
“I thought I heard a rumble from my staff saying, ‘He’s back,'” Biden joked to a crowd of staffers in the Rose Garden after stepping out of the White House residence for the first time since the end of a five-day period of isolation had come out. “Thanks for staying tuned.”
Wearing his beloved aviator sunglasses under the scorching sun, the 79-year-old Democrat noticed the difference when Republican Donald Trump contracted Covid and had to be flown to the hospital at the height of the pandemic in October 2020 before vaccines were available.
“When my predecessor got Covid, he had to be flown by helicopter to Walter Reed Medical Center. He was seriously ill. Luckily he recovered. When I got Covid, I was working from upstairs in the White House in the offices upstairs for the five-day period,” Biden said.
Biden said that getting vaccinated fully, doing preventive testing, and then using the Paxlovid therapeutic to speed recovery from an infection will prevent deaths and it’s all available for free.
“You don’t have to be a president to get these tools,” he said, urging Americans to visit the covid.gov website for information. “The same treatment that I received is available to you.”
“Let’s continue to emerge from one of the darkest moments in our history,” Biden said before completing his nine-minute address with an enthusiastic, “And now I get to go back to the Oval Office.”
Biden had tested positive for coronavirus last Thursday and had experienced a hoarse voice and fatigue. He was working from his residence on a slightly lighter than normal schedule.
The White House medical officer said Wednesday he had given the all-clear after two negative tests.
“In the face of these reassuring factors, the President will relinquish his strict isolation,” Presidential Physician Kevin O’Connor wrote in a memorandum.
While the president is now out of isolation, he will wear a mask for 10 days when he is with others and will continue to test regularly for the virus in case of a “bounce back,” O’Connor said.
Biden does not have a fever, the doctor added, noting “his symptoms have steadily improved and have almost entirely disappeared.”
Biden is the oldest person in the US presidency, but his doctor says he’s generally in good health. He was fully vaccinated and received two booster shots against the coronavirus.
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