All staff members are fully vaccinated against the virus.
Members of Governor Larry Hogan's staff have tested positive for COVID-19. The Governor's Deputy Communications Director Kata D. Hall took to Twitter on Tuesday to confirm three people were infected with the virus, though she did not disclose the members in question. A fourth person initially received a positive test result, but the report was rolled back after a rapid test came back negative.
According to Hall, all staff members are fully vaccinated against coronavirus.
"All testing, notification and quarantining protocols have been followed in accordance with (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidance, and contact tracing is underway," she said.
1) While we cannot disclose any personal health information, there are three confirmed COVID-19 cases affecting members of @GovLarryHogan’s staff.
— Kata D. Hall (@katadhall) August 25, 2021
4) Out of an abundance of caution, both the governor and lieutenant governor received COVID tests, which came back negative. All members of the governor’s staff are fully vaccinated.
— Kata D. Hall (@katadhall) August 25, 2021
After vaccinating 70% of Maryland adults by Memorial Day, Maryland has now achieved the milestone of vaccinating 80% of adults with at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by Labor Day.
— Governor Larry Hogan (@GovLarryHogan) August 22, 2021
Details: https://t.co/cEBAuLYBMW pic.twitter.com/6562vOB1TR
Hall also confirmed the status of the infected staff, saying they are "feeling fine" at this time. Governor Hogan and Lt. Gov. Boyd Rutherford was tested "out of an abundance of caution" and both results returned negative, Hall said.
Governor Hogan recently released a statement detailing the state's progress on COVID-19. In a statement last Sunday, Maryland has met its milestone of an 80-percent vaccination rate among adults, as well as maintaining the second-lowest positivity rate in the nation for COVID-19 cases, at under 5-percent. As of Thursday, the state has confirmed over 491,000 positive cases since the beginning of the pandemic.
Shortly after the news from the Governor's office, the Maryland Association of Counties (MaCo) confirmed several cases of the virus following their Summer Conference in Ocean City last week. It was held between August 18-21 at the Roland E. Powell Convention Center and featured an appearance by the Governor for closing remarks. Members of his staff were also in attendance.
Have you been vaccinated and tested positive for COVID? Share your thoughts in the comments.
