West Virginia’s governor will not provide a “State of the State” address on Wednesday after testing positive for COVID-19 and feeling “extremely unwell” the day before.
Gov. Jim Justice announced the cancellation Tuesday, noting the sudden growth in symptoms and the positive tests. While Justice will not provide his address in person, he will deliver the address through a written message to the West Virginia Legislature to “satisfy constitutional requirements.”
“While I was surprised that my test results came back positive, I’m thankful to the Lord above that I’ve been vaccinated, I’ve been boosted, and that I have an incredible support system, especially my loving family,” Justice said in a press statement.
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Justice, 70, woke up Tuesday morning with congestion and a cough, the governor said. The symptoms later escalated, adding a headache, a fever, and elevated blood pressure to the equation.
Results from a rapid test came back negative, but a PCR test came back positive, he said.
The governor received a treatment of monoclonal antibodies Tuesday night and is being treated by several physicians, the press statement read. Everyone who has been in close proximity with the governor has been alerted to his condition.
Despite his medical condition, Justice implored his constituents to “continue praying for the 5,452 great West Virginians that we’ve lost. We need to keep pulling the rope together. We’re going to get through this and put an end to this terrible pandemic once and for all.”
The Republican governor was reelected in 2020 and has regularly advocated for West Virginia citizens to get vaccinated and boosted.
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The United States is facing an enormous surge in COVID-19 infections. The U.S. broke records on COVID-19 hospitalizations and cases on Tuesday. Nearly 1 in 4 hospitals reported staffing shortages as well.
Justice is the latest politician to test positive for COVID-19. Several members of Congress have reported testing positive for COVID-19 in the last week, including Reps. Nancy Mace, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Sean Patrick Maloney.
