Was Coronavirus USA Czar, Pence, Exposed To COVID-19? Here's What Really Happened

It's still unclear if vice president Mike Pence -- the Trump administration's coronavirus czar -- might have been in close contact with the COVID-19 coronavirus after a visit to Florida last week.

Pence was in the Sunshine State for a fundraiser a few days after president Donald Trump named him to head and coordinate the federal government's response to the coronavirus outbreak. He was in town for a fundraiser at the house of Republican U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan.

While in Florida, Pence stopped over at the Sarasota Military Academy (SMA), a military academy charter school consisting of a middle school and a high school. He met with 44 cadets from SMA.

One of the academy's cadets later went into self-quarantine because he might have been exposed to COVID-19. A school official later said Pence’s people called to confirm if this boy was one of the 44 cadets Pence met with.

SMA executive director Christina Bowman pointed out the student wasn't one of those that met with Pence. Bowman admitted Pence shook hands with some of the cadets and posed for photos. She also pointed out SMA has neither canceled classes nor has it instructed other cadets to stay home and self-quarantine.

There is, however, the possibility one of the 44 students that met with Pence might have come into contact with the boy.

“Students are on campus, so...” Bowman said. “If you are asking me, I can’t divulge any protected information about any student who may have been in class with the student in question.”

It was later revealed this student and his mother went into self-isolation. The good news: neither has been diagnosed with COVID-19 -- yet. The bad news: no one can say for certain if the mother might yet develop the disease.

Media reports said the student’s mother might have come into contact with the coronavirus at work. It's known that one of Florida's two confirmed COVID-19 cases is man in his 60s from Manatee County. This man was confined at the Doctors Hospital, where the mom worked, for five days before he was tested and eventually diagnosed with the highly infectious disease.

SMA said the mother came into contact with the patient in her "professional roles," at the Doctor's Hospital.

Gov. Ron DeSantis was later asked if Pence was indeed exposed to COVID-19 during his visit to SMA. He was taken aback, apparently unaware of this rumor.

“No I don’t think so,” he said.

DeSantis noted younger people are less susceptible to COVID-19 compared to older people, or those with pre-existing medical issues.