White House security official reportedly gravely ill with coronavirus

Trump says we'll have a vaccine "very very shortly," but that may be too late for a White House staffer.

President Donald Trump may believe contracting the coronavirus was a “blessing from God,” but it’s a safe bet his infected White House staff, the nearly 213,000 families of Americans who’ve died from COVID-19, the millions who survived it and those who still suffer from it probably feel differently.

Crede Bailey, who heads the security office at the White House, contracted the virus last month and, according to Bloomberg, is “gravely ill.”

A White House cleaning staffer sanitizes the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room on Monday. Crede Bailey, who’s in charge of the White House security office, is seriously ill with COVID-19. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Bailey’s department works directly with the Secret Service and handles credentials for gaining access to the White House and its surrounding grounds.

Bailey reportedly became ill before the Sept. 26 gathering in the White House Rose Garden to announce President Donald Trump was nominating Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court believed to be a super-spreader event, where a slew of associates and aides got infected with coronavirus. According to Bloomberg, Bailey, whose age was unavailable, has been hospitalized since September, but the White House has not released a statement in regards to his condition.

Read More: Coronavirus testing surges in D.C. after White House outbreak

Trump tested positive for the disease last week and says he wants to make the drug that “cured” him free to those that need it. The drug Regeneron does not have government approval, but the company that produces it claims they have filed an emergency approval from the Food and Drug Administration. 

On Wednesday, Trump addressed the nation while standing in front of the Oval Office at the White House. He says after spending a few days at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center he feels “good” and after taking Regeneron, he “felt good immediately.”

Read More: Trump says contracting coronavirus was a ‘blessing from God’

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Regarding others who are sick, Trump claims he is working on getting them the medication, and maintains there are “hundreds of thousands of doses that are almost ready.” As far as a vaccine, he says there are many companies that are working on it, such as Johnson and Johnson. He adds we will have a vaccine “very very shortly.”

As of press time, coronavirus has claimed the lives of over 212,000 people in the United States alone. 

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