President Donald Trump walked out of Walter Reed Medical Center on Monday evening and is returning to the White House after receiving treatment for coronavirus.
As he was walking out of the medical facility, a reporter asked him, “Do you think you might be a super-spreader, Mr. President?”
Reporter to Trump: “Do you think you’re a superspreader, Mr. President?" pic.twitter.com/gmy4FNpXXF
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) October 5, 2020
.@realDonaldTrump departs the Walter Reed Medical Center after spending 3 nights for treatment of the Coronavirus. pic.twitter.com/EZhuRnzzs0
— Doug Mills (@dougmillsnyt) October 5, 2020
White House physician Sean Conley, D.O., gave an update to the media on Monday about the president’s health status, saying, “Over the past 24 hours, the president has continued to improve.”
“He’s met or exceeded all standard hospital discharge criteria,” Conley continued. “He’ll receive another dose of Remdesivir here today, and then we plan to get him home. It’s been more than 72 hours since his last fever—oxygen levels, including ambulatory saturations and his [inaudible] breathing are all normal. Though he may not entirely be out of the woods yet, the team and I agree that all our evaluations, and most importantly his clinical status, support the president’s safe return home, where he’ll be surrounded by world-class medical care 24/7.”
Watch: Marine One takes off from Walter Reed to bring the President back to the White House pic.twitter.com/iBYee7wwca
— TV News HQ (@TVNewsHQ) October 5, 2020
He's back pic.twitter.com/L83WmnuGwV
— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) October 5, 2020
The president’s release from Walter Reed Medical Center follows a series of tweets that he rattled off throughout the day, including one where he encouraged Americans to not let the pandemic dominate their lives.
“I will be leaving the great Walter Reed Medical Center today at 6:30 P.M. Feeling really good! Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life,” Trump tweeted. “We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs & knowledge. I feel better than I did 20 years ago!”
I will be leaving the great Walter Reed Medical Center today at 6:30 P.M. Feeling really good! Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life. We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs & knowledge. I feel better than I did 20 years ago!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 5, 2020
Trump later released a video statement on his Twitter account where he encouraged people to not live in fear.
“I just left Walter Reed Medical Center and it’s really something very special—the doctors, the nurses, the first responders—and I learned so much about coronavirus” Trump said. “And one thing that’s for certain, don’t let it dominate you. Don’t be afraid of it. You’re going to beat it. We have the best medical equipment, we have the best medicines—all developed recently—and you’re going to beat it.”
“I went, I didn’t feel so good and two days ago, I could have left two days, two days ago I felt great, like better than I have in a long time,” Trump continued. “I said just recently, ‘better than 20 years ago.’ Don’t let it dominate. Don’t let it take over your lives. Don’t let that happen.”
“We’re the greatest country in the world,” Trump continued. “We’re going back, we’re going back to work, we’re going to be out front, as your leader I had to do that. I knew there’s danger to it, but I had to do it. I stood out front, I led. Nobody that’s a leader would not do what I did and I know there’s a risk, there’s a danger, but that’s okay. And now I’m better and maybe I’m immune, I don’t know.”
“But don’t let it dominate your lives,” Trump concluded. “Get out there, be careful. We have the best medicines in the world and it all happened very shortly and they’re all getting approved and the vaccines are coming momentarily. Thank you very much. And Walter Reed, what a group of people. Thank you very much.”
This report has been updated to include additional information.