President Biden has COVID-19, as cases are rising nationwide

President Biden disclosed Wednesday that he has tested positive for COVID-19, and his diagnosis comes as more Americans are being infected.

“I am feeling good and thank everyone for the well wishes,” Biden said in a message on X. Biden also told reporters in Las Vegas that he feels good before heading back to Delaware on Air Force One, CNN reported.

Biden will be self-isolating in Delaware and he said he will continue working. On Sunday, Biden announced he won't be seeking re-election and has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to be the Democratic presidential nominee.

The White House said Biden has received his first dose of Paxlovid, and said his symptoms, which include coughing and a runny nose, remain mild. Biden’s respiratory rate is normal at 16 and his pulse oximetry rate is also normal, at 97%, the White House said.

Biden has plenty of company with his COVID-19 diagnosis. More Americans have been testing positive for the virus recently.

Through July 9, COVID-19 infections were rising, or likely rising, in 45 states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nationally, wastewater viral activity level for COVID-19 is high, the CDC said.

COVID-19 hospitalizations remain low, and far below the levels seen during the peak of the pandemic, but they have been rising in recent weeks, CDC figures show. Emergency department visits for patients with COVID-19 have risen 23% over the past week, the CDC says.

Nationwide, COVID-19 test positivity was 11% over the past week, a 1.9% uptick over the previous week, according to the CDC.

Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told ABC News that an increase in COVID-19 cases is typical in the summer, but should subside before the customary winter surge in cases.

The new cluster of variants, known as FLiRT, account for the majority of COVID-19 cases, and they are thought to be more transmissible than last winter’s variant, JN.1, The Los Angeles Times reports.

The CDC is recommending all Americans 6 months and older should get updated 2024-25 COVID-19 vaccines this fall and winter. Updated vaccines from Moderna, Novavax and Pfizer will be available later this year, the agency said.

Those getting COVID-19 vaccines appear to be much less likely to develop long Covid, researchers found.

A new study published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine found that vaccinated people are at risk of developing long Covid, but unvaccinated individuals had a greater risk of ending up with long Covid.

• Read more: Nearly 18 million Americans have had long COVID, and it’s more common among women