WASHINGTON – Maybe it was just a matter of time. Dr Anthony S. Fauci, President Biden’s top medical adviser for the coronavirus pandemic, tested positive for the virus and showed “mild symptoms,” the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said Wednesday. Dr Fauci, the institute’s director, tested positive for a rapid antigen, the agency said in a statement. He added that he was fully vaccinated against the virus and had received reminders twice. He is taking Paxlovid, the Pfizer antiviral treatment approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of Covid-19, a spokesman for the agency said. The news that Dr. Fauci, one of the world’s leading experts on infectious diseases and a well-known name thanks to the pandemic, had fallen victim to the coronavirus resonated throughout Washington and the country. The positive test was the first for Dr. Fauci, who is 81 years old. But with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimating that more than half of Americans are infected with Covid-19, he is not the only major sufferer. Xavier Becerra, the Minister of Health and Human Services, tested positive on Monday for the second time in less than a month. Maxine Waters, a 83-year-old Republican from California, said Tuesday she tested positive. he had done it in April as well. Dr. Fauci has not been in close contact with Biden or other senior government officials recently and will “isolate himself and continue to work from home,” his institute said in a statement. He will return to his office as soon as he comes out negative. But he had public appearances. The AIDS Clinical Trial Team – a network of hundreds of researchers conducting studies to improve the treatment of HIV and related infections – is meeting in Washington this week and Dr. Fauci, whose laboratory work has focused on HIV / AIDS, addressed to the team in person on Tuesday. Along with other top federal health officials, Dr. Fauci was expected to testify before the Senate Health Committee on the pandemic on Thursday. An official said that the institute of Dr. Fauci worked with committee staff to arrange a remote appearance. While much of the nation seems to be trying to move forward, the coronavirus remains a pervasive threat. According to a New York Times database, more than 100,000 new cases are still found daily in the United States – a number that remained almost constant in June. Many experts believe that the number is underestimated because so many people do home tests whose results are not recorded by public health authorities. While cases are declining in the Northeast and Midwest, cases and hospitals are increasing in the West and South. However, death reports remain low. Less than 350 deaths are reported every day, according to the Times database, from more than 2,600 a day at the height of the Omicron eruption. Dr. Fauci has spent half a century in government and has advised seven presidents, starting with Ronald Reagan, on epidemic and pandemic threats. But the coronavirus pandemic turned him into a political lightning rod. His public urge for health precautions, such as the use of a mask and social distance, made him a frequent target of critics who challenged or opposed such measures. Perhaps more than anyone, he knows how contagious the coronavirus is. This spring, he decided not to attend the White House Correspondents’ Dinner – a gathering of prominent political and news figures featuring the president’s appearance – “because of my personal appreciation of my personal risk,” he said at the time. At the time, Dr. Fauci was preparing for other public engagements, including opening speeches at Princeton and the University of Michigan. The correspondents’ dinner, which drew more than 2,000 guests to a packed hotel ballroom, ended up spreading the virus among many journalists and others in attendance. “It’s only a matter of time before we all get infected, honestly. “This virus has become so contagious,” said Dr. Carlos del Rio, an infectious disease specialist at Emory University, on Wednesday. “What I’m telling people is that at some point you will come across this virus, because we do more things and we get together. “And if you are going to fight the virus, you better get vaccinated and strengthened.”
