watch live
Congress

Sen. Rand Paul Tests Positive For Coronavirus

According to a statement posted on Twitter Sunday, Paul hasn't experienced any coronavirus symptoms.

Sen. Rand Paul Tests Positive For Coronavirus
Julio Cortez / AP
By Katherine Biek
SMS
March 23, 2020

Sen. Rand Paul has been diagnosed with the coronavirus. 

According to a statement posted on Twitter Sunday, Paul hasn't experienced any coronavirus symptoms.  His chief of staff said the lawmaker decided to get tested after attending an event in Kentucky where several other attendees later tested positive.

The Republican lawmaker is the first known U.S. senator to test positive for COVID-19. 

Paul expects to return to the Senate once his quarantine period is over. Some of his colleagues — Sens. Mike Lee and Mitt Romney — announced they're self-quarantining since they've spent "extended" amounts of time with Paul. 

"Very unhappy to hear that Rand Paul has been diagnosed with COVID-19. ... all the senators are going to seek medical advice as to what action we should take to make sure that we don't in any way spread this virus ourselves," Romney said. 

Two members of the House of Representatives were diagnosed with coronavirus earlier this month. One of them, Rep. Ben McAdams, was hospitalized over the weekend after experiencing shortness of breath. 

Contains footage from CNN.