Chris Christie leaves the hospital after a week of Covid-19 treatment

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. | Joshua Roberts/Getty Images

The former New Jersey governor likely contracted the virus at a White House reception for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett.

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie on Saturday morning announced his discharge from a Morristown, New Jersey, hospital, where he spent a week being treated for Covid-19.

Christie tested positive for the virus on October 2, one day after President Donald Trump announced his own diagnosis. The former governor checked himself into the hospital that same day as a precautionary measure but ended up spending the week there.

“I am happy to let you know that this morning I was released from Morristown Medical Center. I want to thank the extraordinary doctors & nurses who cared for me for the last week,” Christie tweeted Saturday.

Christie is one of more than 20 people to become infected with the coronavirus after spending time at the White House.

He helped Trump prepare for the first presidential debate with Democratic nominee Joe Biden in late September, and days earlier attended a White House reception for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett. Dr. Anthony Fauci, a member of the federal coronavirus task force, has called the gathering “superspreader event,” as it appears to have led to the infection of several attendees, including Republican Sens. Mike Lee of Utah and Thom Tillis of North Carolina and White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany.

Although most of those infected at the White House have been isolating and recovering at home, Christie had a somewhat extended stay in the hospital, giving rise to social media rumors about his condition. Like Trump, Christie was at a higher risk for complications due to his gender and weight.

Despite the outbreak, officials within the White House and the Trump campaign don’t appear to have learned their lesson. On Saturday afternoon, Trump is expected to address a crowd of several thousand on the White House South Lawn, his first public event since being diagnosed with the virus. His campaign also scheduled a “big rally” for Monday in Sanford, Florida.

Though both events will be held outdoors, so was a September 18 Trump rally in Bemidji, Minnesota, to which state health officials have linked nine cases and two hospitalizations so far.

Should Christie follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) recommendations, he will not appear at either event.

In general, the CDC recommends an infected person isolate for at least 10 days before engaging with other people. But it also suggests someone who was hospitalized, as Christie was, isolate for a total of 20 days after the onset of symptoms to ensure they are no longer infectious.

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