US FDA commissioner Robert Califf tests positive for COVID

Dr Robert M. Califf, Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, listens during a US Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing on stopping the spread of Monkeypox, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on Sept 14, 2022. (STEFANI REYNOLDS / AFP)

MOSCOW – The US Food and Drug Administration said on Monday Commissioner Robert Califf tested positive for COVID-19 over the weekend while traveling on an official agency business.

Califf, who is experiencing mild symptoms, has not recently been in close contact with US President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris, FDA said in a statement.

ALSO READ: US CDC concerned for new Omicron subvariants

Russia

Russia registered 4,421 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, taking the nationwide tally to 21,468,271, said the official monitoring and response center on Monday.

The center said the nationwide death toll increased by 61 to 390,649, while the number of recoveries grew by 4,944 to 20,860,277.