ANOTHER lawmaker tests positive for COVID: Fully-vaccinated GOP Rep. Ralph Norman reveals he is infected after suing Pelosi over the House mask mandate
Rep. Ralph Norman, one of the three House Republicans suing Speaker Nancy Pelosi over fines for not wearing masks on the House floor, announced he has a breakthrough COVID infection.
Norman said he began experiencing minor symptoms of COVID-19 on Thursday, tested positive for the virus that day and would quarantine for 10 days.
'Thankfully I have been fully vaccinated and my symptoms remain mild,' he said in a statement posted on Twitter.
Rep. Ralph Norman, who is fully-vaccinated, announced he has a breakthrough COVID infection
He is one of the three congressional Republicans suing Speaker Nancy Pelosi over fines for not wearing masks on the House floor
The South Carolina Republican is part of a federal lawsuit against Pelosi over a rule that lawmakers must wear face masks on the House floor.
Last week, Norman and fellow Republican Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Thomas Massie of Kentucky sued Pelosi. They want their $500 fines - given when they went maskless during a May House vote - declared unconstitutional and rescinded.
'The masking requirement was an attempt to prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, medicine, and science, despite a deep divide over these issues of opinion,' lawyers for lawmakers wrote, arguing that masks were required 'in televised areas only' in the chamber.
'It has been used to force Plaintiffs and other members of the minority party to be instruments for fostering public adherence to this ideological point of view that Plaintiffs find unacceptable,' they added.
Norman has been critical of mask mandates.
'Government-imposed mask mandates represent a harmful combination of virtue signaling and unjustified fear,' he tweeted July 28.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is also suing Pelosi over face masks and refuses to wear one in the hallways of Congress
The three lawmakers had challenged the fines in June, arguing the mask rule wasn't in sync with the current federal guidelines on face coverings. That appeal to the House Ethics Committee failed.
That May vote took place after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidance noting that 'fully vaccinated people can resume activities without wearing a mask or physically distancing.'
But after that CDC announcement, Dr. Brian Monahan, the attending physician for Congress, wrote that 'mask requirement and other guidelines remain unchanged until all Members and floor staff are fully vaccinated.'
The face mask requirement was lifted June 11 but was reissued last week because of a resurgence of the coronavirus.
Monahan confirmed in a note to lawmakers and staff that the highly contagious Delta variant of the virus had been detected on Capitol Hill.
Health experts note that breakthrough cases are still rare and typically cause milder symptoms or asymptomatic cases. The majority of recent hospitalizations and deaths have been unvaccinated individuals.
Some fully-vaccinated lawmakers and staff, including Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, have tested positive for COVID in what is called a 'breakthrough' infection.
'I was just informed by the House physician I have tested positive for COVID-19 even after being vaccinated,' Graham said in a statement on Monday.
He said he started having flu-like symptoms Saturday night and went to the doctor Monday morning.
'I feel like I have a sinus infection and at present time I have mild symptoms,' he continued. 'I will be quarantining for ten days.'
'I am very glad I was vaccinated because without vaccination I am certain I would not feel as well as I do now. My symptoms would be far worse,' he added.
Several members of the Senate were seen wearing face masks after Graham's announcement.