Gov. Wolf Has Tested Positive For COVID-19

Gov. Tom Wolf said he has no symptoms and is quarantined at home.

Gov. Tom Wolf announced Wednesday that he has tested positive for coronavirus.

“During a routine test yesterday, I tested positive for COVID-19,” Wolf said. “I have no symptoms and am feeling well and I am in isolation at home.

“I am following CDC and Department of Health guidelines. Frances has been tested and, as we await the result, is quarantining at home with me.”

The governor, who is 72, went on to say that he is performing his duties remotely. He encouraged Pennsylvanians to stay at home as much as possible, and wear masks and follow social distancing guidelines when they must go out.

Wolf’s spokesperson, Lyndsay Kensinger, said others were tested at the same time, but federal health privacy rules prevented her from identifying them.

Wolf’s only public appearance this week was on Monday at a virtual news conference, where he spoke along with Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine. They talked about how the rising number of hospitalizations and dwindling number of intensive care unit beds could lead them to make more tough decisions about how to combat the pandemic. 

Wolf is now among 445,317 people in Pennsylvania who have tested positive for the virus, but he is not the first Pennsylvania leader to get a positive test result.

US Sen. Bob Casey (a Democrat) said he had the virus earlier this year after he tested positive for antibodies.

State Sen. Doug Mastriano (R-Adams) contracted the virus after Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, visited the state before Thanksgiving in an attempt to halt President-Elect Joe Biden’s victory in the state.

Mastriano found out he tested positive while at the White House just hours after that meeting.

Well wishes have already started arriving for Wolf, including from Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Democratic Pennsylvania Congressman Dwight Evans, and Republican Pennsylvania Congressman Scott Perry, whose district includes Wolf’s home in York County.

Several governors have tested positive for the virus, including Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, and Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.