President Donald Trump was reportedly “spooked” after he tested positive for the coronavirus and grew increasingly worried after he began showing symptoms of COVID-19. Trump announced he and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for the virus early Friday morning. The president is now being treated at Walter Reed Medical Center, where he will be treated over the next “few days,” the White House said Friday afternoon. The White House said Trump is not requiring any “supplemental oxygen” in a statement Friday night.
After Trump left the White House wearing a face mask, a person familiar with his response to the positive test told CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins Trump was “spooked” after the positive test. Trump “became increasingly alarmed as he developed symptoms — like a fever — overnight,” the sources said. Sources told CNN’s Jim Acosta that White House officials have “serious concerns” about Trump’s condition, which is worse than the first lady’s.
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WH official says Trump is “fatigued” but not deteriorating. The official went on to say public should not be alarmed and that Trump is taking the situation “very seriously.” WH is making plans to keep the public updated on his condition.
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) October 3, 2020
Acosta’s source said it is “serious” and an adviser believes there is “reason for concern” about Trump’s health Friday night, into Saturday. “The source went on to describe Trump as very tired, very fatigued and having some trouble breathing. WH officials continue to say Trump will be fine,” Acosta reported. Sources also told CNN Trump was “very tired, very fatigued, and having some trouble breathing.”
NEW: White House physician says President Trump “is not requiring any supplemental oxygen” but has started Remdesivir therapy. pic.twitter.com/v9DUeACi1o
— NBC Politics (@NBCPolitics) October 3, 2020
Before Trump went to Walter Reed, he recorded a video from the White House, which he published on Twitter. It was the first time Trump made public comments since his Friday morning tweet on the positive test. “I think I’m doing very well,” Trump said in the clip. “But we’re going to make sure things work out.” Trump said Melania is “doing very well.” She is remaining at the White House.
White House physician Dr. Sean Conley wrote in a statement that Trump received a “single 8-gram dose of Regeneron’s polyclonal antibody cocktail” and “zinc, vitamin D, famotidine, melatonin, and a daily aspirin” as a precaution. Other members of Trump’s family have tested negative for the coronavirus, Conley wrote. Vice President Mike Pence and Second Lady Karen Pence also tested negative.
Regeneron is a biotech company that provided the White House with the experimental antibody treatment. The company’s CEO, Leonard Schleifer, told CNN Trump is now in a “race where his immune system is racing against the virus, and if the virus wins you can have dire consequences, obviously, and what our antibodies do is we make it a fair fight.” Trump, 74, is in a “higher risk group” due to his age, Schleifer explained. “If we give our antibodies, we hope that we will give his immune system enough of a boost so that he can win this and make a complete recovery,” he said. “That’s the strategy. We’ve got a lot of data but we’re still in the experimental phase, but when you’re in the midst of a pandemic and you have people at risk, we think it makes sense to try these.”
