After Longtime Denial, Trump Finally Takes Coronavirus Test

By Staff, Agencies

After longtime denial as rumors spread that he has been infected, US President Donald Trump finally took a test Friday to determine whether he has the coronavirus and will have the results within a few days.

“I also took the test last night, and I decided I should, based on the press conference yesterday. People were asking," Trump said during a press conference at the White House Saturday.

“They sent it to a lab,” he added, saying results should take a "day or two" to come back from the lab.

Trump, who has continued to shake hands with people, including during his announcement Friday at the White House that he was declaring a national emergency, despite the CDC's recommendation to limit physical contact, told reporters that "it almost becomes a habit."

Trump had been repeatedly criticized for refusing to get tested for the virus after it was reported that he was in close contact with multiple people at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida who had tested positive for the coronavirus.

Meanwhile, taking the test appears to be in contrast to a Friday memo from Sean P. Conley, physician to the president, who stated that Trump did not need to be tested because the interactions he had with known patients were "low risk."