White House aides and Pelosi tested for coronavirus amid Texas lawmakers’ visit to D.C.

[ad_1]

A White House official and a spokesperson for the California Democrat confirmed Tuesday that a White House staffer and a senior communications aide to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have tested positive for Covid-19 after being fully vaccinated.

Spokesperson Drew Hamill said the Pelosi aide received the diagnosis after contacting members of the Texas legislature last week.

Hamill said the aide “has not contacted the spokesperson since it was revealed.” In addition, the entire press office was working remotely on Tuesday, with the exception of those who had not been exposed to the aide or had recently tested negative, he said.

Axios, who was the first to report the injuries, said the White House employee was at an event with Pelosi’s aide last week.

The White House official said the White House medical unit conducted contact tracing interviews and determined that there were no “close contacts between White House managers and staff” and that the person was experiencing mild symptoms.

The official stressed that the so-called superinfection of those vaccinated is to be expected and that the mild symptoms experienced by the assistant are an indication that the vaccines are working.

“This is another reminder of the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines against severe disease or hospitalization,” the official said.

The Texas delegation fled en masse to Washington on July 12 in an effort to prevent passage of a bill restricting the state’s Republican vote, with the goal of staying away until the end of the special session called by Republican Governor Greg Abbott.

On Monday, a sixth member of the Texas delegation in Washington, D.C., tested positive for Covid-19, a spokesperson for the lawmakers told NBC News.

Kara Santucci, a spokeswoman for the Texas House of Representatives Democrats, confirmed the case and said the undisclosed member is undergoing self-isolation.

Santucci said last week that the delegation would provide daily rapid tests to its members and staff present in the country’s Capitol. But, in a statement on Monday, it said the delegation would not release the number of daily Covid cases.

Teegan Finn is a political reporter for NBC News.

Haley Talbot is a co-producer at NBC News’ Washington bureau.

Shannon Pettipsy

Shannon Pettipes is the chief White House correspondent for NBCNews.com.

[ad_2]