President Joe Biden continues to “improve significantly” despite a persistent sore throat from his coronavirus infection, according to a Sunday update from his doctor.
“The president is responding to therapy as expected,” wrote Dr. Kevin O’Connor in his latest book Remark. Biden is taking Paxlovid, an antiviral drug that helps reduce the risk of serious illness.
O’Connor wrote that Biden still has a sore throat, although other symptoms, including cough, runny nose and body aches, have “reduced significantly”.
Biden tested positive for the coronavirus on Thursday morning. O’Connor said on Saturday that the president likely became infected with a highly contagious strain known as BA.5, which is spreading across the country, and Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House COVID-19 response coordinator, said Sunday, “It’s the BA.5 variant.”
“Thank God our vaccines and therapies work well against it, which is why I think the president is doing well,” Jha told CBS’ Take on the nation.
Jha also gave a positive update on the president’s health.
“I checked in with his team late last night. He felt good. He had a good day yesterday,” said Jha.
This variant is an offshoot of the ommicron species that emerged at the end of last year. It is believed to be responsible for the vast majority of coronavirus cases in the country. He has been isolating in the White House residence ever since.
Administration officials have emphasized that his symptoms are mild because he received four doses of vaccine and he started taking the antiviral drug Paxlovid after becoming infected.
The White House has not released any photos or video of Biden since Friday, when the media saw him participate in a virtual meeting with economic advisers.
Jha promised the White House would continue to provide updates on the president’s condition and whether he might have long-term symptoms.
“We think it’s very important for the American people to know how well their president is doing,” he said.
“Obviously if he has persistent symptoms, obviously if any of them are getting in the way of his ability to perform his duties, we will disclose that to the American people early and often. But I suspect this will be a course of COVID that we’ve seen in many Americans who have been fully vaccinated, given a double boost, and treated with those tools in hand,” Jha said. assume he will continue to do so.”
Biden’s press secretary has said 17 people, including members of the president’s senior staff and at least one member of Congress, were determined to have had close contact with Biden when he was contagious. No one has tested positive so far, Jha further said Fox News Sunday.