Patrick tests positive for COVID-19, 'will return to public schedule by the end of the week'

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced that he has tested positive for COVID-19 during the last week of December 2021.

The announcement regarding Patrick's diagnosis came from his campaign via a statement that revealed his plans to quarantine, according to KHOU 11. While his vaccination status is unknown, Patrick is just one of many Texas officials who have been recently diagnosed with COVID-19 following the new wave brought on by the omicron variant. 

"His symptoms were mild and no one else in the household was infected. He continues working from home and will return to a public schedule by the end of the week," said Allen Blakemore, Patrick's campaign senior advisor, according to KHOU 11. 

While Patrick's campaign stated that he has since retested and his results are now negative, Patrick, a Republican, still plans to isolate through the end of the week in order to protect others from becoming infected by the virus, according to KHOU 11. Patrick's office and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's office both confirmed that Patrick was not around Abbott last week. 

Patrick's positive test was announced just as Texas began to run out of sotrovimab, the only monoclonal antibody treatment known to be effective against the omicron variant, according to the Texas Tribune. Abbott, who tested positive for COVID-19 last year, is now seeking federal assistance for testing to back up the demands caused by the new wave.

Texas like the rest of the United States is currently in the midst of an omicron surge that began in early December. As of Wednesday, Dec. 29, the state's positivity rate had risen to 26.5%, according to the Texas Tribune. Alongside Patrick's diagnosis, both Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Fort Bend County Judge KP George have also tested positive for the virus within the last month.