WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� For more than a year, ability to avoid the seemed to defy the odds. When he finally , the White House was ready. It set out to turn the diagnosis into a 鈥渢eachable moment鈥� and dispel any notion of a crisis.
鈥淭he president does what every other person in America does every day, which is he takes reasonable precautions against COVID but does his job,鈥� White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain told MSNBC late in the afternoon on Thursday.
It was a day that began with Biden's COVID-19 results and included repeated assurances over the coming hours that the president was hard at work while isolating in the residential areas of the White House with 鈥渧ery mild symptoms鈥� including a runny nose, dry cough and fatigue.
Biden, in a blazer and Oxford shirt, recorded a video from the White House balcony telling people: 鈥淚鈥檓 doing well, getting a lot of work done. And, in the meantime, thanks for your concern. And keep the faith. It鈥檚 going to be OK.鈥�
鈥淜eeping busy!鈥� he also tweeted.
On Friday, Biden was scheduled to meet virtually with his economic team and senior advisors to discuss congressional priorities.
It was all part of an administration effort to shift the narrative from a health scare to a display of Biden as the personification of the idea that most Americans can get COVID and recover without too much suffering and disruption if they鈥檝e gotten their shots and taken other important steps to protect themselves.
The message was crafted to alleviate voters鈥� concerns about Biden鈥檚 health 鈥� at 79, . And it was aimed at demonstrating to the country that the pandemic is far less of a threat than it was before Biden took office, thanks to widespread vaccines and new therapeutic drugs.
Conveying that sentiment on Day 1 of Biden鈥檚 coronavirus experience virus wasn鈥檛 always easy, though.
In a lengthy briefing with reporters, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said repeatedly that the White House had been as transparent as possible about the president鈥檚 health. But she parried with reporters over specifics. And when pressed about where Biden might have contracted the virus, she responded, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think that that matters, right? I think what matters is we prepared for this moment.鈥�
Jean-Pierre and White House COVID-鈦�19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha didn鈥檛 fully answer questions about whether Biden began isolating as soon as he started experiencing symptoms on Wednesday night, as federal guidelines suggest, or did so following his positive test the next day. Jha declined to speculate on some aspects of the president鈥檚 prognosis, characterizing the questions as hypotheticals.
Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said it鈥檚 important for Americans to know they must remain careful about the virus, which continues to kill hundreds of people daily.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the balance that we have to strike,鈥� Osterholm said. 鈥淭he president of the United States will do very well. But that may not be true for everyone.鈥�
Biden鈥檚 first-day symptoms were mild in large part because he鈥檚 fully vaccinated and boosted, according to a statement issued by his physician, Dr. Kevin O鈥機onnor. The president also is taking Paxlovid, an antiviral drug designed to reduce the severity of the disease.
Jha said Biden鈥檚 case was being prioritized, meaning it will likely take less than a week for sequencing to determine which variant of the virus Biden contracted. Omicron鈥檚 now makes up more than 65% of U.S. cases.
Jean-Pierre said first lady Jill Biden was in close contact with the president, but she declined to discuss others who also might have been exposed, citing privacy reasons. Biden had a day earlier to promote efforts to combat climate change and flew on Air Force One with several Democratic leaders, including Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
A White House official confirmed that Vice President Kamala Harris was also in close contact with Biden, and Klain said he was too.
Klain, who called the president鈥檚 testing positive a 鈥渢eachable moment鈥� for the country, said the White House wasn鈥檛 aware of any positive COVID results that were linked to the president鈥檚 case.
During her briefing, Jean-Pierre bristled at suggestions the Biden administration wasn鈥檛 being much more forthcoming with information about the president鈥檚 illness than that of his predecessor, Donald Trump. The former president , before vaccines were available, and was for three nights.
鈥淚 wholeheartedly disagree,鈥� Jean-Pierre said of comparison. 鈥淲e are doing this very differently 鈥� very differently 鈥� than the last administration.鈥�
Asked about the possibility Biden might need to be hospitalized, Jha stressed that the president was 鈥渄oing well鈥� and added that there were 鈥渙bviously a lot of resources available here at the White House to take care of him.鈥�
鈥淲alter Reed is always on standby for presidents. That鈥檚 always an option,鈥� he added. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 true whether the president had COVID or not.鈥�
Leana Wen, a public health professor at George Washington University, said it was good for the White House to send the message that Biden can keep working even after testing positive.
鈥淭hat shows that it鈥檚 business as usual,鈥� Wren said.
Jean-Pierre鈥檚 predecessor, Jen Psaki, noted that White House officials have 鈥渂een preparing for this probably for several months now, given the percentage of people in the country who have tested positive.鈥�
鈥淲hat they need to do over the next couple of days is show him working and show him still active and serving as president and I鈥檓 certain they鈥檒l likely do that,鈥� Psaki, who left her post as White House press secretary in May, said on MSNBC, .
Biden plans to continue to isolate until he tests negative, the White House said.
Dr. Eric Topol, head of Scripps Research Translational Institute, said that could mean he鈥檚 鈥渙ut of commission from interacting with people for at least eight to 10 days.鈥�
鈥淭his could go on easily for a couple of weeks, but the good thing is they are going to monitor him very carefully,鈥� Topol said. 鈥淭hat is what we should be doing for everyone so that we don鈥檛 keep playing into the virus鈥� hands, causing more spread when it鈥檚 already hyper-spreadable.鈥�
Will Weissert And Chris Megerian, The Associated Press
