Republican Senator Who Refused Vaccine, Masks Tests Positive For COVID-19

A Republican state senator in Alaska who previously refused to get vaccinated and wear a mask has tested positive for COVID-19.

State Sen. Lora Reinbold, R-Alaska, announced she tested positive for COVID-19 in a Facebook post Tuesday, saying it was her “turn to battle COVID head on.”

“Who do you think is going to win?” she said, adding: “When I defeat it, I will tell you my recipe.”

In her post, Reinbold also said she feels “blessed” to have gotten Ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug believed to be able to help treat COVID-19.

However, more rigorous research has not found evidence of the drug being effective against COVID-19. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and other health agencies have also advised against self-medicating with Ivermectin, noting that the drug is not yet authorized or approved for use in treating COVID-19 in humans.

Reinbold is a known critic of masks and COVID-19 vaccine mandates. She was previously banned by Alaska Airlines after she clashed with a staffer who asked her to comply to mask mandates issued by federal transportation officials.

“We have notified Senator Lora Reinbold that she is not permitted to fly with us for her continued refusal to comply with employee instruction regarding the current mask policy,” Alaska Airlines spokesman Tim Thompson had said in an email sent to Anchorage Daily News in April.

The airline has since reviewed Reinbold’s suspension and ruled in favor of upholding it indefinitely.

Reinbold is the second lawmaker to have tested positive for COVID-19 this week. Republican Sen. David Wilson of Wasilla was also diagnosed with novel coronavirus this week.

Sen. Click Bishop, R-Fairbanks, said he was feeling ill but has tested negative for the virus, according to the Anchorage Daily News.

The news comes as COVID-19 infections nationwide begin to decline. However, case numbers and hospitalizations remain high in five states, including Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana and Pennsylvania.

On Wednesday, health officials recorded 121,457 new COVID-19 cases and 3,087 deaths nationwide.

The U.S. has recorded 44,766,965 cases and 721,562 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.