Hello and welcome to the Ostrome Update COVID-19, a podcast on the COVID-19 pandemic with

Dr. Michael Ostrome.

Dr. Ostrome is an internationally recognized medical detective and director of the Center

for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, or CITRAP, at the University of Minnesota.

In this podcast, Dr. Ostrome will draw on more than 45 years of experience investigating

infectious disease outbreaks to provide straight talk on the COVID-19 pandemic.

I'm Chris Dahl, reporter for CITRAP News, and I'm your host for these conversations.

Welcome back everyone to another episode of the Ostrome Update Podcast.

On July 21st, the day our last episode was released, the White House announced that President

Biden had tested positive for COVID-19.

While it was certainly front-page news, for the most part, there was little sense of crisis

around the infection.

The twice-boosted President received antiviral treatment, experienced mild symptoms, and

continued to work while in isolation until testing negative.

While he has since then tested positive again with a rebound case, his symptoms have remained

mild.

In many ways, the President's infection seems to symbolize our new normal.

Like many Americans, the President had in recent months largely resumed his regular

activity, even though the BA5 sub variant is running rampant.

And while he could not evade the virus, his illness was manageable.

As the New York Times noted, the infection underscored how the virus remains a persistent,

if muted, threat in a country trying to put the pandemic in the past.

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