Biden declared a major disaster in Kentucky in late July and ordered federal aid for local recovery efforts in areas affected by severe flooding and storms. The disaster has left dozens of people dead and hundreds of people homeless in the state, with the governor describing it as “the most devastating flooding event our state has ever seen.”
The trip will be Biden’s first since he was diagnosed with Covid on July 21. Friday’s travel announcement came on the seventh consecutive day that Biden tested positive for Covid, a case that his doctor described as a “rebound” infection seen in some patients treated with the antiviral Paxlovid.
Biden completed the five-day Paxlovid course following his initial diagnosis and had tested negative in the days after finishing treatment. But the president soon began to test positive again and has remained in isolation since. The president’s physician, Kevin O’Connor, said Biden’s mild symptoms — such as an occasional cough — had mostly resolved as of Friday.
But because Biden tested positive again on Friday, he will “continue his strict isolation measures.” The White House hasn’t said whether the Kentucky trip will be canceled if Biden continues to test positive by Monday.
