National Guard Bureau chief tests negative for coronavirus after initial positive result

The head of the National Guard Bureau on Monday tested negative for coronavirus after first testing positive for the illness last week at the White House.

This is the third COVID-19 test for Air Force Gen. Joseph Lengyel, who first tested positive ahead of a Joint Chiefs of Staff meeting with President Trump on Saturday. Lengyel did not attend the meeting.

He then tested negative in a second test before the third test, where he also tested negative, on Monday at Walter Reed Military Medical Center, according to a National Guard Bureau statement.

Lengyel, who has been overseeing the roughly 46,000 National Guard troops deployed across the country to help combat the coronavirus pandemic, was one of two Joint Staff members that recently had a brush with the highly contagious illness.

Chief of Naval operations Adm. Michael Gilday is self-quarantining after coming in contact with a family member who has contracted the virus.

Gilday had a test come back negative on Friday, but he decided to self-quarantine out of an abundance of caution.

The Trump administration has had several officials test positive for the disease in the past week, prompting extra precautions to prevent the spread of the virus among White House staff. A spokeswoman for Vice President Pence, Katie Miller, tested positive for the disease, as did a military member who serves as one of Trump’s personal valets.

White House officials working in the West Wing are now being asked to wear masks, and the building is being deep-cleaned more frequently.

In addition, Trump, Pence and officials who meet with them regularly are being tested daily for the virus instead of weekly.