WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump is no longer contagious nine days after being stopped in his tracks by Covid-19, said his physician in a statement released late yesterday.
“I am happy to report that in addition to the president meeting CDC (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention) criteria for the safe discontinuation of isolation, this morning’s Covid-19 PCR sample demonstrates, by currently recognised standards, he is no longer considered a transmission risk to others,” said Sean Conley.
Conley, who has been accused of a lack of transparency with the public, said it has been 10 days since Trump first began showing symptoms of the coronavirus.
Tests showed there is “no longer evidence of actively replicating virus”, and that Trump’s viral load is “decreasing”, he said – though he did not say the president is now virus-free.
Although it is probably the case that people with low levels of Covid-19 are no longer contagious, a cut-off figure has not been established by the medical community.
Conley said Trump is fever-free and symptoms have “improved”, adding that he will continue to monitor the president as he “returns to an active schedule”.
Trump was hospitalised on October 2 and stayed there for three days before returning to the White House.
Guidelines from CDC state that for people with mild or moderate Covid-19, isolation and precautions can be discontinued 10 days after symptom onset and once they have been fever-free for 24 hours.
For more severe cases, the guidelines state up to 20 days after symptom onset – but the intensity of Trump’s case has not been confirmed. – AFP, October 11, 2020
