House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer tests positive for Covid-19

By Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer announced Tuesday that he had contracted Covid-19 and is “experiencing mild symptoms,” becoming the latest member of Congress to test positive for the virus.

“This afternoon, I tested positive for COVID-19, and I am experiencing mild symptoms,” the Maryland Democrat said in a statement released Tuesday night. “Thankfully, I am fully vaccinated and already received my booster shot.”

Hoyer, 82, said he will work from home this week while he isolates and will use proxy voting while the House is in session this week. The chamber is expected to soon consider a bill to bolster US competitiveness with China, a White House priority, and, along with the Senate, is tasked with reaching a deal to fund the government and avert a shutdown by February 18.

“I look forward to returning to the Capitol once my isolation period is over to continue carrying out the important work of leading House Democrats as we govern responsibly For the People,” he said.

As the No. 2 Democrat in the House, Hoyer is the highest ranking member of House leadership to report a Covid-19 breakthrough case. House Democratic Whip Jim Clyburn had tested positive for Covid-19 in December.

Several lawmakers have publicly announced Covid-19 cases in recent weeks, including Reps. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, Raul Grijalva, an Arizona Democrat, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, as well as Sens. Mitt Romney, a Utah Republican, and Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat.

All House Democrats are vaccinated, according to a previous CNN report. There is a group of House Republicans who have either not been vaccinated or not disclosed whether they are vaccinated to CNN.

The Covid-19 infection rate at the US Capitol’s testing center had decreased from 13% to 4% in less than a month, the Office of the Attending Physician said last week.

Breakthrough infections among members and staff “have not led to hospitalizations, serious complications, or deaths, attesting to the value of coronavirus vaccinations,” Dr. Brian Monahan, the Capitol attending physician, said at the time.

This story has been updated with additional details Tuesday.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Dan Berman, Manu Raju and Annie Grayer contributed to this report.