President Donald Trump said he has undergone a second coronavirus test on using a new diagnostic that produced a result in less than 15 minutes, and it determined he has not been infected.
“I think I took it really out of curiosity to see how quickly it worked,” said Trump, who also tested negative last month after coming into contact with a Brazilian official who later tested positive for the coronavirus.
A White House official said Trump took the newly released Abbott Laboratories test that offers results in 15 minutes or less.
At his daily White House news briefing, Trump said Americans should wear protective face masks if they wish.
“If people want to wear them, they can” he said, scarves work just as well.
Dr. Deborah Birx, a member of Trump’s coronavirus task force, said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is working on a recommendation about masks to add to U.S. guidelines on how Americans can best protect themselves.
It is critical, she said, that people do not “get a false sense of security” that they are protected from the virus by wearing a mask, because there are plenty of other ways that infections can occur.
Trump took issue with states that are letting some low-risk
prisoners out of jail because of the coronavirus contagion and said his administration was looking to see “if I have the right to stop it in some cases.”
