Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul has tested positive for COVID-19, becoming the first U.S. senator to contract coronavirus.
His office announced the diagnosis on Twitter Sunday morning, saying he is asymptomatic and currently in quarantine. The announcement said that he was tested out of an abundance of caution due to his frequent traveling and that he was not aware of any direct contact with an infected person.
Paul is expected to return to his work in the Senate after his quarantine ends.
The tweet adds that Paul’s Washington, D.C. office began working remotely 10 days ago, so nobody on his staff has had contact with him.
On Saturday, Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen Pence tested negative for coronavirus, according to his press secretary, Katie Miller. Their need for a test arose after a staff member of Pence’s office had a positive diagnosis for the virus on Friday. The White House also said last week that President Donald Trump tested negative for COVID-19.
Paul is the first major U.S politician that has a positive coronavirus diagnosis. Other celebrities in Hollywood that have announced they have the virus include Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson, Idris Elba, Daniel Dae Kim, Kristofer Hivju, Colton Underwood and Andy Cohen.
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