Coronavirus Pandemic: Harvard University's President Bacow and his wife tests positive for COVID-19

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Harvard University President Lawrence Bacow and his wife Adele fleet Bacow have tested positive for coronavirus. In a statement, the Harvard University President said that he and his wife tested positive on Monday after first experiencing symptoms on Sunday. He wrote they experienced coughing, followed by fevers, chills, and muscle aches.

 "We started experiencing symptoms on Sunday — first coughs then fevers, chills, and muscle aches — and contacted our doctors on Monday."

“We were tested yesterday and just received the results a few minutes ago,” Bacow wrote. “We wanted to share this news with all of you as soon as possible.”

The university president says it is currently unclear how he and his wife contracted the virus.

“Neither of us knows how we contracted the virus, but the good news—if there is any to be had—is that far fewer people crossed our paths recently than is usually the case,” he wrote. 

Bacow and his wife began working from home and limiting contact with others on March 14, according to the statement.

 “We began working from home and completely limiting our contact with others on March 14 in keeping with recommendations to adopt social distancing measures.

The prestigious university announced its first case of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, on March 13, days after announcing that it was moving all classes online. As of Tuesday afternoon, 18 Harvard affiliates have tested positive for COVID-19, according to Harvard University Health Services. 

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