Coronavirus: First lady Jill Biden tests negative for COVID-19 after rebound infection

WASHINGTON — First lady Jill Biden, who suffered an apparent rebound COVID-19 infection last week, has tested negative for the virus, officials said Monday.

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According to The Associated Press and The New York Times, a Biden spokeswoman shared the news Monday night, adding that the first lady, who had been isolating in Delaware, plans to head back to Washington on Tuesday.

First lady Jill Biden tests positive for COVID-19 in rebound case

The 71-year-old’s first positive COVID-19 test came Aug. 15 as she and the president vacationed in South Carolina, the news outlets reported. Biden, who was treated with the antiviral drug Paxlovid, received her second negative test Aug. 21 and went to Delaware, where she again tested positive on Wednesday, according to the Times.

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President Joe Biden, 79, also had a rebound infection after he first tested positive for COVID-19 and took Paxlovid in July, the news outlets reported. “A minority” of people who took the drug have been diagnosed with a rebound case, according to the AP.

First lady Jill Biden tests negative for COVID-19, will return to Delaware

Both Bidens, who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and have had two booster shots, said they had mild symptoms during their initial infections and were asymptomatic during their rebound cases, the Times reported.

As of Monday, the rate of new COVID-19 cases appeared to be declining both domestically and globally, according to the Times. The U.S. was averaging 88,391 new cases per day, down 14% from two weeks earlier, the newspaper reported. Meanwhile, the worldwide average was 695,979 new cases per day, also down 14% in the same period.

As for fatalities, the U.S. averaged 478 deaths per day – a decrease of 2% from two weeks earlier, the newspaper reported. The global average was 2,312 daily deaths, down 7% from 14 days earlier.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Monday that 67.4% of the U.S. population is considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19. About 48.5% of fully vaccinated residents have received a booster dose of a coronavirus vaccine, the agency said.

– The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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