SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, June 12, 2020 (Gephardt Daily) — Jon Huntsman says other than feeling like he’s “been hit by a train” he’s holding his own in his personal battle with COVID-19.
Huntsman announced Tuesday he’d been diagnosed with the disease, less than a week after being exposed to a campaign staffer who later tested positive for coronavirus.
Huntsman is currently locked in a tight race for the GOP’s nomination for governor, a job he previously held from 2005 to 2009. The COVID-19 diagnosis has pulled him from the campaign trail.
Friday, while sitting in front of his home computer, Huntsman described the emotional and physical rollercoaster he and his family have been on since learning he’d been exposed late last week.
In an interview to be played in its entirety on Bill Gephardt’s podcast, Huntsman said he was initially told his tests for COVID-19 had come back negative. He said he had started interacting with his family again when he learned his test results had been compromised and that he needed to be re-tested.
The new test turned out positive.
Huntsman said he has been able to handle the random, intense body aches and pains, as well as intermittent bouts of nausea. He said his only real concern was the prospect of any sort of respiratory issue, and that his oxygen levels were being closely monitored.
The former governor said the entire ordeal, including the frustration of receiving errant test results, gave him a special insight into what thousands of Utah families are going through.
My biggest concern was that I felt you did not take this virus seriously when I watched the story of your campaign up north shaking hands, close contact with no mask on, no distancing, and the only reason a staffer said was, it is hard to break past habits. This virus has been around for months and I felt you had treated this very lightly. You say you want to be our leader in Utah, yet how many elderly came out to see you and they too may have been exposed. Leadership means showing concern for all, not just the economic growth of our state. I had thought of voting for you till I saw this, and am tired of being couped up because others feel it is their right to act irresponsibly during a pandemic with no cure and keep increasing our stay at home.