Trump on Friday before leaving for Walter Reed

By Agency Reporter

Contrary to the optimistic report given by White House doctor Sean Conley, President Donald Trump is not yet on a clear path to recovery from COVID-19.

Reuters reported on Saturday that Trump’s vital signs over the last 24 hours were very concerning, quoting an unidentified source familiar with his health.

The source’s assessment of the Republican president’s medical status was at variance with the team of doctors who said at a press conference earlier on Saturday that he was “doing very well.”

One of those doctors said Trump had told them “‘I feel like I could walk out of here today.’”

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The source, who asked not to be identified, said the next 48 hours will be critical in terms of Trump’s care.

Trump left the White House and was moved to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center near Washington on Friday just hours after he was diagnosed with COVID-19.

White House doctor Sean P. Conley told reporters outside the hospital on Saturday that Trump had not experienced difficulty breathing, and currently was not on supplemental oxygen.

“The team and I are extremely happy with the progress the president has made,” Conley said.

Conley would not provide a timetable for Trump’s possible release from the hospital.

The White House has said Trump, 74, will work in a special suite at the hospital for the next few days as a precautionary measure. He had no public events scheduled on Saturday.

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The diagnosis was the latest setback for the Republican president, who is trailing Democratic rival Joe Biden in opinion polls ahead of the Nov. 3 presidential election.

Trump has downplayed the threat of the coronavirus pandemic from the outset, even as the disease has killed more than 200,000 Americans and hammered the U.S. economy.

Conley said Trump had received a first dose of a five-day course of Remdesivir, an intravenous antiviral drug sold by Gilead Sciences Inc that has been shown to shorten hospital stays.

He is also taking an experimental treatment, Regeneron’s REGN-COV2, one of several experimental COVID-19 drugs known as monoclonal antibodies, as well as zinc, Vitamin D, famotidine, melatonin and aspirin, Conley has said.

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Trump announced on Twitter early on Friday that he and the first lady, Melania Trump, had contracted the virus.