Karine Jean-Pierre, the back-up White House Press Secretary traveled over seas with Pres. Joe Biden to France and Poland and has returned with COVID-19. She went on the trip instead of lead Press Secretary Jen Psaki because she had tested positive for the Coronavirus last week. The women were in the same press briefing and hard worked together before Psaki announced she was infected. The press statement Jean-Pierre released is similar to the one Psaki sent days before it. Both women say they were in socially distanced meetings with Pres. Biden before confirming they tested positive. The White House Correspondents Association also stated a reporter who attended the final briefing before Psaki made her announcement. Almost a week earlier Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff also tested positive for the Coronavirus. These cases indicate that the we are in an active pandemic and the spread may be increasing inside the White House. The statement from Jean-Pierre follows"
Statement by Principal Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre
This afternoon, after returning from the President’s trip to Europe, I took a PCR test. That test came back positive.
I last saw the President during a socially distanced meeting yesterday, and the President is not considered a close contact as defined by CDC guidance. I am sharing the news of my positive test today out of an abundance of transparency.
Thanks to being fully vaccinated and boosted, I have only experienced mild symptoms. In alignment with White House COVID-19 protocols, I will work from home and plan to return to work in person at the conclusion of a five-day isolation period and a negative test.