OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt has returned to his office following two weeks of isolating himself at home after he tested positive for the coronavirus.
“I’m glad to be back in the saddle,” Stitt said in a video statement on his Twitter page Monday. “I’m glad to be back in the office” after working the past two weeks from home, where he had isolated himself after announcing his positive test.
“Everyone I was in contact with continues to test negative for COVID-19 and no one has developed symptoms,” the Republican said in the video while sitting at his desk in his office at the state Capitol.
Stitt encouraged people to regularly wash their hands, socially distance and wear masks when social distancing isn’t possible. Stitt had attended President Donald Trump’s rally in Tulsa last month, which health experts have said likely contributed to a surge in coronavirus cases there.
The governor’s return to his office came on the same day the Oklahoma State Department of Health reported 1,401 new confirmed positive cases of the coronavirus, a second consecutive day of record highs for a single day.
The increase is a combination of both community spread of the virus and the health department clearing a data entry backlog, said agency spokesman Rob Crissinger.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up within weeks. But for others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, the highly contagious virus can cause severe symptoms and be fatal.
