Trump released from Walter Reed Medical Center. ‘Don’t be afraid of Covid,’ he tweets
President Donald Trump was released from a military hospital where he has been receiving treatment for COVID-19 and returned to the White House on Monday evening.
The president was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center with COVID-19 on Friday. He walked out of Walter Reed shortly after 6:30 p.m. ET on Monday, video shows.
“Feeling really good!” Trump wrote on Twitter before the news conference, saying he would depart the hospital at 6:30 p.m. “Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life.”
Trump also posted a video to Twitter on Monday evening with similar comments and said vaccines were “coming momentarily.”
More than 210,000 people in the United States have died from COVID-19, according to Johns Hopkins University, and there have been more than 7.4 million confirmed cases.
Presidential physician Dr. Sean Conley said at the briefing Monday that Trump “may not be entirely out of the woods yet” but that his medical condition supported his return to the White House, which has a fully-staffed and equipped medical unit.
Trump will continue to receive steroids, Conley said. He’ll receive a fourth dose of remdesivir, an anti-viral medication, at the hospital Monday and a fifth and final dose at the White House on Tuesday.
“He’s back and up to his old self,” Conley said at the briefing. Conley declined to answer many questions, including whether he’d have advised Trump to go to a New Jersey fundraiser last Thursday night and when Trump last tested negative for the coronavirus.
Asked whether Trump would remain quarantined in the White House residence, Conley said arrangements would be made for Trump to safely go wherever he needs to be in the White House. He declined to answer specific questions about the Oval Office or other areas.
On Sunday, Conley said Trump’s medical condition had improved and doctors hoped he could return to the White House as early as Monday.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., wrote Monday on Twitter that Trump “sounds terrific” on the phone and was ready to get back to work.
Trump was flown to Walter Reed in Bethesda, Maryland, on Friday evening, about 17½ hours after he announced on Twitter that he and first lady Melania Trump had tested positive for the coronavirus.
The president’s blood oxygen level dropped twice in two days, he has received supplemental oxygen at least once and he is being treated with steroids, his doctors said for the first time Sunday. In addition, Trump has received two experimental drug therapies during his illness, including one that takes five days to complete.
On Sunday evening, Trump left the hospital briefly in a presidential motorcade to wave at supporters gathered outside. White House officials said Trump’s doctors approved the quick motorcade trip, but other physicians said they found it irresponsible and dangerous.
After posting a handful of videos and messages on Twitter over the weekend, Trump posted a flurry of tweets Monday morning urging supporters to vote for him.
The news Monday on the president’s health comes on the heels of a weekend of confusing reports on Trump’s medical condition from Conley and his medical team.
Conley said Sunday he had withheld information about Trump’s blood oxygen levels the day before because he was “trying to reflect the upbeat attitude” of the president and his team.
But his Sunday briefing raised more questions.
Asked if Trump had also required additional oxygen Saturday, Conley said he would have to check with the president’s nursing staff. And he again declined to provide details about Trump’s condition, including whether lung scans show signs of pneumonia or other complications.
Trump’s doctors offered more details Monday about the president’s blood pressure and other vital signs, but Conley declined to say when Trump’s last negative COVID-19 test took place, which is key to determining how long he’s been ill.
Among those in Trump’s inner circle who have tested positive for COVID-19 are first lady Melania Trump, campaign manager Bill Stepien, press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, aide Hope Hicks, personal assistant Nicholas Luna, former counselor Kellyanne Conway, adviser Chris Christie and Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel. GOP Sens. Thom Tillis, Ron Johnson and Mike Lee have all tested positive as well.
At least two White House press aides, along with other mid-level staffers and members of the White House press corps, have reportedly also tested positive for COVID-19.
This story was originally published October 5, 2020 at 1:53 PM with the headline "Trump released from Walter Reed Medical Center. ‘Don’t be afraid of Covid,’ he tweets."