White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki contracts Covid-19 for second time

WASHINGTON (BLOOMBERG) - White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki tested positive for Covid-19 on Tuesday (March 22) and will no longer travel with President Joe Biden to Europe, she said.

Mr Biden tested negative on Tuesday and is not considered a close contact to Ms Psaki, the press secretary said in a statement.

Mr Biden is scheduled to depart Wednesday for meetings with US allies in Brussels and Warsaw regarding the war in Ukraine.

Ms Psaki said she is experiencing only mild symptoms and will isolate for five days.

Her positive test leaves the president without his top spokesman during the high-stakes summits.

She is vaccinated, and previously tested positive for the virus in October during Biden's last trip to Europe, which she did not attend, citing a family emergency.

The nature of Ms Psaki's job may raise her risk for exposure.

She encounters other White House staffers and journalists each day and speaks almost daily in hour-long briefings without a mask.

Ms Psaki is not considered a close contact of any reporters who attended her Monday press briefing, White House spokesman Chris Meagher said while appearing in her place at Tuesday's session.

The press secretary's lectern in the White House briefing room is positioned several feet from the first row of reporters' seats.

Contact tracing from Ms Psaki's positive test is still underway, Mr Meagher said.

While Mr Biden has yet to contract Covid-19, several people close to him have recently been infected.

Mr Doug Emhoff, husband of Vice-President Kamala Harris, tested positive last week, as did several lawmakers who attended a House Democratic retreat on March 11 where Mr Biden spoke.

Mr Biden was not considered a close contact of those who recently tested positive, the White House said.

Ms Harris has tested negative at least twice since Mr Emhoff's positive test was reported.