Vaccinated Pelosi Aide Tests Positive After Contact with Texas Democrats

Politics|A vaccinated adjutant to Pelosi tests affirmative aft being successful interaction with Texas Democrats, immoderate of whom besides tested positive.

• July 20, 2021, 2:56 p.m. ET

An adjutant to Speaker Nancy Pelosi has tested affirmative for the coronavirus aft coming into interaction past week with a radical of Texas lawmakers who were visiting Washington, immoderate of whom aboriginal tested affirmative for the virus.

Drew Hammill, a spokesperson for Ms. Pelosi, said connected Tuesday that a subordinate of her staff, a elder spokesperson who had been “fully vaccinated,” had tested affirmative connected Monday. He said the adjutant had had nary interaction with the talker since being exposed to the virus.

At a quality league connected Tuesday, Jen Psaki, the White House property secretary, said a afloat vaccinated White House authoritative had besides tested affirmative for the microorganism “off campus,” was experiencing “mild symptoms,” and remained distant from the analyzable awaiting a trial to corroborate the diagnosis.

She would not divulge whether the adjutant had been with the Texas lawmakers, each of whom accidental they were afloat vaccinated arsenic well, who made a high-profile travel to Washington successful an effort to artifact the adoption of a restrictive predetermination law. Axios reported that some the Pelosi adjutant and the White House adjutant had had interaction with the Texans.

“We cognize that determination volition beryllium breakthrough cases,” Ms. Psaki said, adding that determination had been erstwhile cases astatine the White House that had not been disclosed. “This is different reminder of the efficacy of the Covid-19 vaccines against terrible unwellness oregon hospitalizations.”

She said the adjutant had nary adjacent interaction with Mr. Biden oregon apical White House officials.

The Covid vaccines successful usage successful the United States person proven to beryllium effectual astatine reducing the hazard of terrible symptoms oregon hospitalization, but infections among afloat vaccinated individuals, known arsenic breakthrough infections, are not unheard-of. It is not yet wide whether the highly transmissible Delta variant circulating crossed the state increases the likelihood of breakthrough infections.

As a effect of the affirmative test, Mr. Hammill said that Ms. Pelosi’s property bureau was moving remotely, with the objection of those aides who had tested antagonistic oregon did not travel into interaction with the infected spokesperson.

The quality of the infections rattled immoderate connected Capitol Hill, wherever lawmakers and nonrecreational unit person been moving toward much mean operations for months now. Representative Steny H. Hoyer, Democrat of Maryland and the bulk leader, said that rising coronavirus cases crossed the country could unit the House to reconsider its relaxation of disguise requirements and other pandemic-era measures similar the usage of proxy voting.

“We are going to person to decide, fixed the upswing successful each state, whether oregon not prudence demands we spell backmost to wearing a mask,” Mr. Hoyer told reporters connected Tuesday.

A abbreviated clip later, Dr. Brian P. Monahan, the Capitol physician, issued caller guidance saying the rising cases could necessitate the instrumentality of cosmopolitan masking, though helium would not urge it for now. He said that “several” legislature aides had experienced breakthrough infections and urged vaccinated radical seeking “to further trim their hazard of disease” oregon transmission to voluntarily enactment a disguise backmost on.

“Individuals person the idiosyncratic discretion to deterioration a disguise and aboriginal developments successful the coronavirus Delta variant section menace whitethorn necessitate the resumption of disguise deterioration for each arsenic present seen successful respective counties successful the United States,” helium wrote.

Members of the Texas legislature near the authorities past week to question to D.C. successful last-ditch effort to forestall the transition of a restrictive caller voting law by the Republican-controlled legislature. Photographs showed them maskless portion traveling to Washington. Since then, six lawmakers connected the travel person tested affirmative for the coronavirus.