Biden tests positive for COVID-19 as summer infections spike

As Georgia and the nation are feeling under the weather from a summertime bump in COVID-19 cases that has now become as expected as July 4 fireworks, President Joe Biden has added the virus to his list of recent troubles.

While traveling Wednesday in Las Vegas, Biden tested positive for COVID, forcing him to cancel a scheduled appearance in order to comply with recommended protocols, which still call for isolation during an infection. Television footage of the President’s slow steps up the stairs of Air Force One as he departed for home reflect the hallmark exhaustion that can accompany the illness.

The White House reported Biden is experiencing “mild symptoms” including “general malaise” from the infection. Biden flew home to Delaware, where he will “self-isolate and will continue to carry out all of his duties fully during that time,” officials said.

The timing of the illness is difficult politically as Biden is weathering growing calls to withdraw from the race over concerns about his stamina and fitness.

The virus is known to strike particularly hard at those over age 60, but Biden, 81, has been vaccinated and is current on his recommended annual booster dose. The vaccines have proven highly effective at limiting serious illness and death in people of all ages.

Dr. Kevin O’Connor, the president’s physician, said Wednesday that Biden was prescribed the antiviral drug Paxlovid.

Credit: AP

Biden last tested positive for COVID-19 twice in the summer of 2022, when he had a primary case and a rebound case of the virus.

Many current COVID sufferers can commiserate with the President. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports a s of July 09, 2024, COVID-19 infections are growing or likely growing in 45 states and territories , including Georgia and Washington D.C.

“I mean, I’ve had it, a bunch of people have had it,” said Dr. Carlos del Rio, distinguished professor of medicine in infectious diseases at Emory University School of Medicine. He believes he got infected on a plane returning from a meeting abroad in early June. He went from testing negative one night to a bright strong positive test the next morning, to recovery and testing negative by the end of the week.

“It was really quick,” del Rio said. “This new variant, I get the impression that if you’re vaccinated and boosted, you are likely ... going to feel sick for a day or two, but it’s going to be a mild illness with very little significance.”

Given President Biden’s age, which makes him more vulnerable, del Rio said he agreed he would have given Biden Paxlovid, which is meant to be given before severe symptoms start to prevent them, not as a treatment after they arise.

A summertime COVID outbreak has become the norm since the pandemic began, tied to people gathering indoors where it’s cooler and enjoying holiday travel. Health experts and doctors have said they expect this summer’s illnesses to be milder than some past versions of the virus, but the latest iterations of the ever-evolving coronavirus seem to be more contagious.

For many people who have already had COVID, a reinfection is often milder than an earlier case. But those 65 and older, pregnant or immunocompromised remain at higher risk of serious complications from COVID.

Now that COVID is a regular seasonal occurrence, it’s important to treat it that way, said Cherie Drenzek, the Georgia’s state epidemiologist and chief science officer. People can get the seasonal vaccine boosters and talk to a doctor just as we do annually with flu, Drenzek said. A new booster should be available in August, she said.

While few masks are visible these days, wearing one and taking a COVID test is still important if people get exposed to COVID and then are going to be around vulnerable people.

Drenzek said cases are definitely rising in Georgia, which usually happens at the end of each summer. However, she said, this increase in hospitalizations is not nearly as big or as dangerous as previous ones have been.

“Even though we’re seeing increases in COVID activity, the severe outcomes remain low,” Drenzek said. “For example, here in Georgia, the number of deaths due to COVID that we’ve been documenting over the last several months have been on average 10 or less a week. Now this is a record low compared to other variants, other waves, other times during the pandemic.”

Deaths tend to lag behind hospitalizations by a couple weeks, but Drenzek said she was still not expecting a huge spike.

President Biden’s age alone puts him at a higher risk of severe illness or death from COVID.

Age remains the strongest risk factor for severe COVID illness, with the risk of severe outcomes increasing markedly with increasing age, according to CDC researchers.

Based on data from deaths in the U.S. from 2020 to 2022, and including both vaccinated and unvaccinated people, compared to adults between 18 and 29, the risk of death from COVID is 25 times higher in those ages 50 to 64 years; 60 times higher in those ages 65 to 74 years; 140 times higher in those 75 to 84; and 340 times higher in those ages 85 and older.

The virus has killed 1.19 million people in the U.S. since the pandemic began in 2020, according to the CDC.

The CDC no longer tracks COVID numbers but estimates the trend of the virus spread based on emergency room visits. According to the CDC, for the week that ended July 6, Georgia reported fewer than 1% of emergency room visits are due to COVID. Nationally 1.3% of emergency visits were diagnosed as COVID, an increase of 23% in week that ended July 6.

In June, the CDC recommended everyone 6 months and older get one of the new COVID vaccines when they become available this fall.

The Food and Drug Administration recently asked drug makers to update the COVID vaccines to target the most recent strain circulating widely in the U.S. over the winter months.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. This story has been updated to include comments from Dr. Carlos del Rio and Cherie Drenzek.

So you’ve got COVID and aren’t sure whether to stay home? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in March updated its guidelines on when people can return to their normal activities after any viral illness such as the flu or COVID.

You can go back to your normal activities when, for at least 24 hours, both are true:

o Your symptoms are getting better overall, and

o You have not had a fever (and are not using fever-reducing medication).

When you go back to your normal activities, take added precautions over the next 5 days, such as taking additional steps for cleaner air, hygiene, masks, physical distancing, and testing yourself when you will be around other people indoors.

o Keep in mind that you may still be able to spread the virus that made you sick, even if you are feeling better. You are likely to be less contagious at this time, depending on factors like how long you were sick or how sick you were.

o If you develop a fever or you start to feel worse after you have gone back to normal activities, stay home and away from others again until, for at least 24 hours your symptoms are improving overall, and you have not had a fever (and are not using fever-reducing medication). Then take added precautions for the next 5 days.

Credit: Ronda Churchill/AP

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