Comedian Ali Wentworth, Wife of George Stephanopoulos, Reveals Coronavirus Diagnosis

Comedian Ali Wentworth, wife of Good Morning America anchor George Stephanopoulos, revealed on Instagram she tested positive for the coronavirus. Wentworth later appeared on GMA, where she said she started feeling ill while walking their dog. She soon realized what she had was more than a common cold and has had a high fever since being tested.

“I have tested positive for the Corona Virus,” Wentworth wrote on Instagram. “I’ve never been sicker. High fever. Horrific body aches. Heavy chest. I’m quarantined from my family. This is pure misery.” Wentworth is self-isolating at her home with Stephanopoulos in New York. The couple have been married since 2001 and are parents to daughters Elliott Anastasia, 17, and Harper Andrea, 14.

Wentworth, 55, shared a video message on GMA, in which she thanked everyone for their support and well-wishes. “You know I’m feverish if I’m allowing myself to go on national television with no makeup on,” she joked before seriously explaining her symptoms.

“What started was I had a real tightness in my chest,” the Office Space star said. “I was walking my dog Cooper, and I just felt very, very winded and I assumed, of course, it was because I never work out and I’m out of shape, but it was too heavy for that. And I came home, wasn’t feeling great and it wasn’t until the fever started that I realized this can’t be a common summer cold.”

She was tested three days ago and has had “high fevers” of 101 to 2013 degrees Fahrenheit.

“Achy joints is a big thing. It feels like a really, really horrible flu,” she said. “And you know, I’m still in it now, but I can tell you the things that help [are] Tylenol, chicken soup. I took some hot baths when I had chills and I have two dogs that sleep on my bed with me. So anyway, be safe. Stay home.”

Stephanopoulos said he is not showing symptoms of COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus yet, but is afraid he might still have it. People can carry the virus without showing symptoms.

“Remember that so many of us in New York City are already presumed to have had it,” the ABC News journalist said. “I wonder myself whether I already had maybe a mild version and just didn’t even know it, just there’s no way to know right now.”

Stephanopoulos said he will take the test if he develops symptoms. In the meantime, his family is quarantining and he is the only one who goes into Wentworth’s room. In fact, he described himself as the caregiver for Wentworth, and said their daughters have not seen her since Monday.

“I have to get a little bit close sometimes to take her temperature and do the oxygen test and I bring her food,” Stephanopoulos said. “I’m definitely being careful in wiping down and wearing gloves. I have not been wearing a mask. Usually she takes care of us 24 hours a day and now we’re doing our best to take care of her.”

Wentworth was most recently seen in Nightcap, a comedy she created for Pop TV and is now on Hulu. She also starred in It’s Complicated, Call Me Claus, Office Space and Jerry McGuire. She published her latest book, Go Ask Ali: Half-Baked Advice (and Free Lemonade), in 2018.

There are now more than 236,000 coronavirus cases in the U.S. as of Thursday. More than 5,600 deaths have been reported, including over 1,300 in New York City.

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