Rep. Seth Moulton in self-quarantine after experiencing coronavirus symptoms
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Rep. Seth Moulton, who briefly sought the 2020 Democratic nomination for president, revealed Wednesday he is under self-quarantine after experiencing symptoms of the novel coronavirus, but said he does not “qualify” for a test.
“On Thursday, I began feeling unwell with a low grade fever and a concerning tightness in my chest, to a degree I’ve never felt before, that lasted several days,” Moulton, D-Mass., said in a statement. “I have also had a sore throat, though no serious cough, long with body aches and unusual fatigue. My wife Liz has had similar symptoms.”
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Moulton said that prior to experiencing symptoms consistent with coronavirus, he had “proactively instructed” his staff in both Salem, Mass. and Washington D.C. to “work entirely from home and self-isolate in order to mitigate the risk of spreading COVID-19.”
Moulton said he has received medical advice from the VA, his primary health care provider, and the attending physician for Congress, Dr. Brian Monahan.
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“As the House doctor explained, I am ‘symptomatic,’ but because the symptoms are minor and a test would not change my treatment protocol, my wife and I don’t qualify for tests,” Moulton explained.
“As a result, and out of an abundance of caution, I will follow my doctors’ direction and continue to stay home and self-quarantine until I hit seven days after my symptoms started to improve and I do not have a fever for 72 hours,” he said.
Moulton added that his daughter, Emmy, who is 18-months old, “has no symptoms at all.”
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Moulton said he was making his symptoms and decision to self-quarantine public because he “will potentially miss some important votes as a result.”
“Leadership must be personal as well, and I hope others who have mild symptoms will also self-quarantine and follow doctors’ orders,” he said. “People with symptoms should be tested, and the fact that tests are not available for Liz and me and far too many other Americans, a month after I wrote to the Vice President demanding more widespread testing, is a major failure of the Administration that I will continue fighting to fix."
He added: “We will get through this pandemic by working together from home, and we’ll be a stronger country on the other side.”
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Moulton is one of several House lawmakers in self-quarantine. Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., and Ben McAdams, D-Utah, tested positive for COVID-19.
Meanwhile, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., tested positive for coronavirus over the weekend, sending several GOP Senators into self-quarantine. Paul is the only known senator to have coronavirus at this time.
As of Wednesday afternoon, there were more than 60,000 cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. More than 825 people have died.
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Moulton announced his bid for president in April 2019 but suspended his bid for the White House in August.