Health authorities in New Jersey were given a list of 206 individuals who attended events with President Donald Trump the day he tested positive for the new coronavirus, and authorities in the north-eastern US state are doing contact tracing.
The Department of Health said it “has reached out to these individuals to make them aware of possible exposure” and recommend isolation, if they were in close contact with the president or key staff. People will also need to get tested.
“The contact tracing process is ongoing,” the department said on Sunday. “New Jersey officials have been informed that the federal government is also conducting contact tracing.”
The state, which neighbours New York, was particularly hard hit in the first months of the pandemic.
Trump held fundraisers at his golf resort in New Jersey on Thursday and flew back to Washington the same evening.
The White House says Trump first tested positive after the fundraisers.
The president’s travels are in sharp focus, as he was constantly on the road and meeting with people in the days leading up to his positive test, when he may have been contagious.
It remains unclear when the White House learned that a top aide to the president, Hope Hicks, tested positive. Hicks was with Trump on a number of days last week.
Last weekend, Trump held a mass gathering at the White House to announce his pick to fill a Supreme Court vacancy.
A number of people who attended that event have since tested positive for the new coronavirus.
Trump held campaign events last week and also took part in a presidential debate with Joe Biden, the Democrat running to unseat Trump in November.
