Sign up for our daily briefing

Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.

Please enter a valid email.

Please enter a valid email.

Subscription failed
Thank you for subscribing!

Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday

Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday

Please enter a valid email.

Please enter a valid email.

Subscription failed
Thank you for subscribing!

Denver news in your inbox

Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver

Please enter a valid email.

Please enter a valid email.

Subscription failed
Thank you for subscribing!

Des Moines news in your inbox

Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines

Please enter a valid email.

Please enter a valid email.

Subscription failed
Thank you for subscribing!

Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox

Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities

Please enter a valid email.

Please enter a valid email.

Subscription failed
Thank you for subscribing!

Tampa Bay news in your inbox

Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay

Please enter a valid email.

Please enter a valid email.

Subscription failed
Thank you for subscribing!

Charlotte news in your inbox

Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte

Please enter a valid email.

Please enter a valid email.

Subscription failed
Thank you for subscribing!

Please enter a valid email.

Please enter a valid email.

Subscription failed
Thank you for subscribing!

Pence press secretary tests positive for the coronavirus

Miller talks with Marc Short, Pence's chief of staff, on March 24. Photo: Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images

Vice President Mike Pence's press secretary Katie Miller has tested positive for the coronavirus, President Trump said Friday. The news comes a day after Trump's valet did the same.

Why it matters: This shows that, despite regular testing and measures to protect Trump and Pence, White House officials can still be — and are being — exposed to the virus.

Between the lines: Miller's positive diagnosis, which Axios has confirmed through additional sources, means that several people within the West Wing may have been exposed to the virus.

  • As Pence's spokesperson, she is in close contact with the vice president and has accompanied him on his recent travels across the country. She is also married to senior Trump adviser Stephen Miller, who works in the West Wing.
  • She did not respond to Axios' request for comment.

The latest: The news of Miller contracting the virus delayed Pence's Friday trip to Iowa by about an hour. Miller, who would normally travel with the vice president, wasn't on board Air Force Two today when Pence's team learned of the news.

  • But six aides who had been exposed to Miller were asked to deplane, per a senior administration official. All six tested negative, per a pool report.
  • Miller has not had direct contact with Trump recently, the official said. The official wouldn’t comment on her proximity to Pence.

Worth noting: Many news outlets decided not to reveal Miller's identity out of respect for her privacy. However, Trump told reporters Friday afternoon that "Katie" had tested positive for the virus.

  • Trump said Thursday that White House staff, who were being tested on a weekly basis, would be tested daily now.

Go deeper:

Air Force Two delayed after Pence staffer tests positive for coronavirus

Trump's personal valet tests positive for coronavirus

Go deeper

Rashaan Ayesh
Aug 16, 2020 - Health

Passengers tested ahead of Italy's first Mediterranean cruise since lockdown

Photo: Miguel Medina/AFP/Getty Images

Cruise ship passengers were tested for the coronavirus on Sunday before setting sail for what is believed to be the first Mediterranean cruise since Italy's lockdown, AP reports.

Why it matters: Cruise ships were the source of some of the first coronavirus outbreaks in the world due to the high population density and close quarters that passengers live in. Over 600 passengers on the Diamond Princess were infected with the virus in February.

Go deeper (<1 min. read)Arrow
Axios
Updated Oct 7, 2020 - Health

World coronavirus updates

Expand chart
Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Axios Visuals

New Zealand now has active no coronavirus cases in the community after the final six people linked to the Auckland cluster recovered, the country's Health Ministry confirmed in an email Wednesday.

The big picture: The country's second outbreak won't officially be declared closed until there have been "no new cases for two incubation periods," the ministry said. Auckland will join the rest of NZ in enjoying no domestic restrictions from late Wednesday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said, declaring that NZ had "beat the virus again."

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Jonathan Swan
Aug 16, 2020 - Health

Trump eyes new unproven coronavirus "cure"

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

To the alarm of some government health officials, President Trump has expressed enthusiasm for the Food and Drug Administration to permit an extract from the oleander plant to be marketed as a dietary supplement or, alternatively, approved as a drug to cure COVID-19, despite lack of proof that it works.

Driving the news: The experimental botanical extract, oleandrin, was promoted to Trump during an Oval Office meeting in July. It's embraced by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson and MyPillow founder and CEO Mike Lindell, a big Trump backer, who recently took a financial stake in the company that develops the product.

Go deeper (7 min. read)Arrow