Florida Republican becomes first member of Congress to test positive for coronavirus

A Florida congressman announced Wednesday that he has tested positive for the coronavirus,

officially bringing the fast-spreading infection to Capitol Hill.

Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart’s office said in a statement that the Republican lawmaker isolated himself at his Washington, D.C., apartment after experiencing flu-like symptoms this past Friday, including fever and a headache.According to the statement, Balart, 58, received word Wednesday evening that he had tested positive for COVID-19, making him the first member of Congress to contract the respiratory virus.

“I want everyone to know that I am feeling much better,” Balart said. “However, it is important that everyone take this extremely seriously and follow CDC guidelines to avoid getting sick and mitigate the spread of this virus.”

Balart said he plans to work from his apartment for the next few weeks. He noted that he won’t go back to his South Florida home anytime soon because his wife has pre-existing conditions and would be put at “exceptionally high risk.”

“We must continue to work together to emerge stronger as a country during these trying times,” he said.

At least 14 other members of Congress have entered self-quarantine after interacting with infected people.

One of them, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, went into isolation after learning he had been in proximity of an infected Brazilian government official during an event at President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida earlier this month.

Trump, who was in close contact with same Brazilian official, opted against going into quarantine, but got himself tested for the virus this past weekend. A White House doctor said the president’s test came back negative.