LONDON – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is in “good spirits” after spending the night in an intensive care unit in London where he is being treated for coronavirus, the British leader’s office said Tuesday.
Johnson, 55, is being treated with oxygen but is not on a ventilator.
He was admitted to St Thomas’ Hospital in central London on Sunday because he had “persistent symptoms of COVID-19, including a temperature and cough, almost two weeks after testing positive for the respiratory illness.
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A Downing Street spokesman said Johnson is in a stable condition. “He has not required mechanical ventilation or non-invasive respiratory support,” he said.
Johnson is the world’s major world leader to fall ill with the virus. He has designated Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab to run the country in his absence.
“I’m confident he’ll pull through because if there’s one thing I know about this prime minister, he’s a fighter and he’ll be back at the helm leading us through this crisis in short order,” Raab said during a press conference Tuesday.
Many high-level British officials are in self-isolation with coronavirus symptoms. Johnson’s pregnant fiancee is also recovering from the virus.
“We’re desperately hoping that Boris can make the speediest possible recovery,” said Cabinet minister Michael Gove, who is one of those officials in self-quarantine.
Messages of support and best wishes for Johnson have poured in from around the world, including from France’s President Emmanuel Macron and India’s leader Narendra Modi.
“Americans are all praying for his recovery,” President Donald Trump said. “He’s been really something very special – strong, resolute, doesn’t quit, doesn’t give up.”
Trump added that he had been in touch with “leading companies” who have been working on possible coronavirus treatment solutions in the U.S. Trump said he had “asked them to contact London immediately” to see if they could help.
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Alexandra Cirone, a professor in Cornell University’s department of government and an expert in European politics, said Johnson’s high-profile hospitalization comes after a wave of politicians around the world have also been diagnosed with COVID-19, including the EU’s Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, the French Minister of Culture Franck Riester, and at least 24 members of the Iranian parliament.
He added that Johnson’s worsening condition is partly notable because his government was slow to act in response to COVID-19.
“He seemed to ignore expert evidence on mitigating the pandemic using lockdown and social distancing measures, in favor of a misguided ‘herd immunity’ approach,” he said.
Source Article from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2020/04/07/coronavirus-covid-19-boris-johnson/2960288001/
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