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Oct. 7 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump returned to the Oval Office on Wednesday, less than a week after being hospitalized following a positive COVID-19 test. Administration officials briefed Trump on both ongoing stimulus negotiations between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin as well as Hurricane Delta, a Category 2 storm, which is barreling toward the U.S. Gulf Coast, White House spokesman Brian Morgenstern said.
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"Was just briefed on Hurricane Delta and spoke with [Gov. Greg Abbott] of Texas and Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards. Please heed the directions of your state and local officials. We are working with them very closely -- please be prepared, be careful, and be safe!" Trump wrote on Twitter Wednesday afternoon.
Trump was discharged from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Monday after testing positive for COVID-19 late Thursday and being admitted to the hospital on Friday.
The president's return to the Oval Office came as his physician, Dr. Sean Conley, released an update stating the president said he felt "great" this morning, adding his physical exam and vital signs, including oxygen saturation and respiratory rate all remained "stable and in normal range."
Conley also said Trump has been fever-free for more than four days, symptom-free for 24 hours and has not needed or received any supplemental oxygen since he was initially hospitalized. He added that Trump "demonstrated detectable levels of SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies from labs drawn Monday."
Trump received a single infusion of Regeneron's dual monoclonal antibody treatment Friday and the company told CNN Wednesday that the laboratory versions of immune system proteins designed to target the coronavirus would remain detectable in the president's system for several months.
"Most of the standard assays for IgG would not distinguish between endogenous (self-made) antibodies and the ones delivered by our therapy. However, given the volume of IgG antibodies delivered in our therapy and the timing of these tests, it is likely that the second test is detecting REGEN-COV2 antibodies," the company said.
In a video message recorded outside the Oval Office on Wednesday, Trump praised the Regeneron treatment, stating he would push to have it more widely distributed for free to treat COVID-19, adding that he has prepared an emergency use authorization. He also touted a similar treatment from drugmaker Eli Lilly, which on Wednesday submitted an emergency authorization request to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Trump's decision to return to the Oval Office prompted concern that he could spread the virus to White House staff as more than a dozen people close to the president, including first lady Melania Trump, senior adviser Stephen Miller, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, three of her deputies, campaign manager Bill Stepien and former White House adviser Kellyanne Conway have also tested positive.
Other top advisers have since left the White House to quarantine at home after testing positive or as a precaution to avoid contracting the virus, The Los Angeles Times reported.
Morgenstern told reporters the White House and West Wing are deep cleaned "on a regular basis" and staff would be able to use personal protective equipment and maintain physical distance from the president to allow him to work in the White House.
In response to a question about why Trump has not appeared publicly since returning to the White House, Morgenstern said the president "wants to speak to the American people and will do so soon," adding he plans to release more videos messages like the one shared Wednesday.
