The daughter of US President Donald Trump, Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner tested negative for the coronavirus or COVID-19, but as per experts, the result does not mean that they are 'off the hook'. The White House officials are currently struggling to make sure who all may have spread the virus after Trump and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for the virus on Friday. A huge contract-trace operation is currently going on since Thursday after Hope Hicks, an adviser to Trump tested positive.
According to scientists, one negative result must not be seen as a guarantee that a person is not infected. Dr. Alan Wells, the medical director of clinical laboratories at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center stated that the negative results must not be used as a substitute for the quarantine. "It takes a number of days for the virus to replicate enough to be detected," Wells told NBC News.
Ivanka and Jared at Risk?
A clinical microbiologist at the University of Southern California named Susan Butler-Wu said, "If you've just been exposed, it's very unlikely that even if you're incubating that you're going to test positive. There's just not enough time," as reported by metro.co.uk. Ivanka and Kushner both went to the presidential debate in Ohio on Tuesday. Sher even shared a photo on the plane with her father without masks. Hicks was also traveling with them and reportedly starting showing symptoms the next day. It is not clear whether Ivanka and Kushner are going to be self-isolating themselves.
The couple was reportedly seen going to the White House on Friday. The US CDC stated that symptoms of the deadly disease can appear anytime between two to 14 days after exposure. The health organization also warns that a person who was in close contact with someone infected with the virus might still have to self isolate even if the person tests negative.
The news about the president testing positive for the virus was shared by Trump on Twitter. He was taken to the military hospital. Many people who were there during an event at the White House Rose Garden have also tested positive. The deadly virus outbreak is currently spreading like wildfire around the world. A vaccine is expected by the first quarter of 2021.
