Health News at Your Fingertips

Here’s where the day stands so far:

• Donald and Melania Trump are experiencing “mild symptoms” after testing positive for coronavirus. The president announced overnight that he had tested positive for coronavirus after one of his top aides, Hope Hicks, contracted the virus.
• Joe and Jill Biden tested negative for coronavirus. Biden shared a debate stage with Trump on Tuesday, but the two presidential nominees were instructed not to shake hands and to remain several feet apart from each other.
• The US unemployment rate fell to 7.9% in September. The latest report from the labor department, which was overshadowed by news of Trump contracting coronavirus, showed the US economy added just 661,000 jobs last month.

The blog will have more coming up, so stay tuned.

Democratic nominee Joe Biden is moving forward with his plans to travel to Michigan today, after testing negative for coronavirus.

According to a pool report, Biden’s motorcade was en route to the airport as of about 20 minutes ago.

Biden was scheduled to travel to Grand Rapids, Michigan, today to deliver a speech on the economy and attend a “mobilization event.”

There had been speculation that Biden would scrap the trip after the president announced he had tested positive for coronavirus.

But the nominee is traveling as planned after his doctor announced Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, had tested negative for coronavirus.

Again, it’s important to note that additional testing will likely be required to ensure Biden did not contract the virus at Tuesday’s debate because it can take several days to develop coronavirus symptoms.

The president of the University of Notre Dame, Rev John Jenkins, has tested positive for coronavirus after attending a White House event on Saturday.

The university said in a statement that Jenkins received a test after learning a colleague had tested positive for the virus. He plans to isolate as he recovers.

“My symptoms are mild and I will continue work from home,” Jenkins said. “The positive test is a good reminder for me and perhaps for all of how vigilant we need to be.”

Jenkins attended Saturday’s event in the White House Rose Garden, where Trump announced Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the supreme court.

The university president received criticism for not wearing a mask and for shaking hands while at the event, and he later apologized for ignoring coronavirus guidelines.

Senator Mike Lee, who has also tested positive for coronavirus, was at the Rose Garden event as well.

Trump is not participating in a call with New York governor Andrew Cuomo that he was scheduled to join moments ago, according to a New York Times reporter.

Vice-president Mike Pence joined the call with the Democratic governor instead.

White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said earlier today that the president is in “good spirits and is very energetic,” continuing his work while he recovers.

According to Bloomberg News, White House aides said Trump seemed “exhausted” on Wednesday, but they attributed it to his rigorous campaign schedule.

It’s important to note that Joe Biden and others who have recently been in contact with the president will likely require further testing.

It can take several days after initial exposure for symptoms, and a positive coronavirus test result, to emerge.

From the co-founder of the Covid Tracking Project:

After his campaign confirmed he had tested negative for coronavirus, Joe Biden thanked everyone who had expressed concern for his health.

“I’m happy to report that Jill and I have tested negative for COVID,” Biden said in a tweet. “Thank you to everyone for your messages of concern. I hope this serves as a reminder: wear a mask, keep social distance, and wash your hands.”

Joe Biden’s personal physician confirmed the Democratic nominee and his wife, Jill Biden, have tested negative for coronavirus.

“Vice President Joe Biden and Dr. Jill Biden underwent PCR testing for COVID-19 today and COVID-19 was not detected,” Dr Kevin O’Connor said in a statement released by the Biden campaign.

O’Connor added, “I am reporting this out in my capacity as both Vice President Biden and Dr. Biden’s primary care physician.”

Biden saw Trump on Tuesday, when the two participated in the first presidential debate, but there was minimal contact between the two nominees because they were instructed not to shake hands and to stay several feet apart from each other.

Democratic nominee Joe Biden has tested negative for coronavirus, according to an NBC News reporter.

Biden spent 90 minutes on a debate stage with Trump on Tuesday, but the two nominees were instructed not to shake hands and to remain several feet apart from each other.

Senator Mike Lee was at the White House on Saturday for the announcement of Amy Coney Barrett’s supreme court nomination.

Lee hugged some of the guests at the Rose Garden event while holding his mask in his hand, disregarding coronavirus guidelines to wear a mask while in close proximity to others.

Senator Mike Lee met with supreme court nominee Amy Coney Barrett on Tuesday, two days before Lee tested positive for coronavirus.

That meeting could have put Barrett at risk of contracting coronavirus, raising the possibility that the judge will have to isolate in the days ahead.

Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell and judiciary committee chairman Lindsey Graham have said Barrett’s confirmation hearings will start as planned on October 12.

Republican senator Mike Lee of Utah announced that he has also tested positive for coronavirus.

Lee said he sought a test yesterday after he experienced symptoms that he initially mistook for allergies.

“Unlike the test I took just a few days ago while visiting the White House, yesterday’s test came back positive,” Lee said in a statement posted to Twitter.

Lee said he would isolate for the next 10 days and would return to the Senate judiciary committee in time for supreme court nominee Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation hearings, which are scheduled to start on October 12.