--- title: Amy Coney Barrett Had COVID-19 in Recent Months, Friends of Supreme Court Pick Say description: Amy Coney Barrett, Donald Trump's Supreme Court pick, had the coronavirus in recent months canonical: https://time.com/5895544/amy-coney-barrett-covid-19/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2020-10-02T17:28:17.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-24T09:16:37.063Z article:section: Politics og:title: Amy Coney Barrett Had COVID-19 Symptoms in Recent Months, Friends of Supreme Court Pick Say og:description: Amy Coney Barrett, Donald Trump's Supreme Court pick, had the coronavirus in recent months og:url: https://time.com/5895544/amy-coney-barrett-covid-19/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt99abe6c4e3456645/698a12bfb3fce37e190c7338/Amy_Coney_Barrett_26.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: Amy Coney Barrett Meetings og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Amy Coney Barrett Had COVID-19 Symptoms in Recent Months, Friends of Supreme Court Pick Say twitter:description: Amy Coney Barrett, Donald Trump's Supreme Court pick, had the coronavirus in recent months twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt99abe6c4e3456645/698a12bfb3fce37e190c7338/Amy_Coney_Barrett_26.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Amy Coney Barrett Had COVID-19 in Recent Months, Friends of Supreme Court Pick Say > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Oct 2, 2020 5:28 PM UTC  Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett, and Pat Cipollone, White House counsel, arrive at the U.S. Capitol before meeting with Senators throughout the day on Sept. 30, 2020. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett, and Pat Cipollone, White House counsel, arrive at the U.S. Capitol before meeting with Senators throughout the day on Sept. 30, 2020.Tom Williams—CQ-Roll Call/Sipa  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Oct 2, 2020 5:28 PM UTC Amy Coney Barrett, President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, was believed to have COVID-19 earlier this year, according to multiple people close to her. Two friends of Barrett, who were granted anonymity because they did not feel comfortable discussing Barrett’s personal medical history on the record, confirmed to TIME that the judge had been sick in recent months and was thought to have contracted the virus. One said Barrett displayed mild symptoms and had quarantined. The other said she had received a positive test result. The Washington Post [reported](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/barrett-coronavirus-court-trump/2020/10/02/ecf7c7ce-04cf-11eb-8879-7663b816bfa5%5Fstory.html) Friday that Barrett had been diagnosed with the virus over the summer and had recovered, citing three officials familiar with the diagnosis. The White House declined to comment. A member of Barrett’s family did not respond to a request for comment. President Donald Trump said in the early morning hours Friday that he and First Lady Melania Trump had tested positive for the virus, a revelation that could have cascading political effects, including potentially on the timing of Barrett’s confirmation hearings. The news that Barrett had tested positive in recent months could be relevant to Barrett’s ongoing confirmation process if the judge has already had the virus and may be resistant to reinfection. According to the White House, Barrett is tested daily for COVID-19, and tested negative on Oct. 2. Republicans said in the aftermath of Trump’s announcement that they were preparing to proceed on schedule with Barrett’s confirmation, despite the fact that some of the key players involved may have been exposed in recent days. “Just finished a great phone call with \[President Donald Trump\],” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell [tweeted](https://twitter.com/senatemajldr/status/1312042678217998338) Friday morning. “He’s in good spirits and we talked business — especially how impressed Senators are with the qualifications of Judge Barrett. Full steam ahead with the fair, thorough, timely process that the nominee, the Court, & the country deserve.” Barrett’s hearings are slated to begin in the Judiciary Committee on Oct. 12\. McConnell said earlier Friday that he hoped for Barrett to be cleared by the committee on October 22, but that the timing for a final vote by the full Senate remained up in the air. **Read more:** [_What If Trump’s Condition Worsens?_](https://time.com/5895938/not-on-a-clear-path-to-a-full-recovery-what-happens-if-trumps-condition-worsens/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ [_Mike Pence Steps Into the Spotlight_](https://time.com/5895996/mike-pence-trump-hospitalized/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ [_Physician Briefing Raises More Questions Than Answers_](https://time.com/5895933/trump-coronavirus-doctor-hospitalized/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ [_Trump’s Unique COVID-19 Treatment_](https://time.com/5895846/trump-covid-19-treatment/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ [_White House’s Silence Worries Diplomats_](https://time.com/5895857/diplomats-worry-trump-health/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ [_U.S. Adversaries Exploiting Trump’s Illness_](https://time.com/5895614/cascade-of-misinformation-u-s-adversaries-are-exploiting-trumps-illness-and-the-white-house-isnt-helping/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ [_How Trump’s Diagnosis Could Change the Campaign_](https://time.com/5895539/donald-trump-covid-19-presidential-race/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ [_Aides Wonder If More Could Have Been Done to Protect Trump_](https://time.com/5895780/president-donald-trumps-hospitalized-covid/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ [_What to Know About Regeneron_](https://time.com/5895771/trump-regeneron-covid-cocktail/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ [_Where Trump Has Been Since Monday_](https://time.com/5895546/donald-trump-covid-19-timeline/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ [_At 74, President Trump Is at Higher Risk of COVID-19 Complications_](https://time.com/5895439/trump-covid-19-coronavirus-age/?utm%5Fsource=roundup&campaign=coronavirus) _∙_ Trump’s disclosure of his COVID-19 diagnosis immediately raised questions about potential exposures for Barrett, who had stood besides Trump as he announced her nomination in the Rose Garden on September 26\. Barrett spent much of this week meeting with Republican Senators. Beyond the President’s own positive test, the number of cases in the West Wing—senior adviser Hope Hicks has also contracted the virus, the White House said—raised the potential of an outbreak in the Capitol that could impact Barrett’s hearings.Republican Senator Mike Lee of Utah, a member of the Judiciary Committee who met with Barrett on Tuesday, said Friday that had tested positive. There is a possibility that the judge’s confirmation hearings could be held remotely. One Republican aide working on the confirmation process noted that Senators have had the option of appearing remotely for hearings throughout the pandemic. Senate Democrats put out statement calling for a delay in Judiciary Committee hearings for the safety of everyone involved, and said the process shouldn’t be done virtually. Democratic aides have pointed out that hearings for two judicial nominees for the circuit court have been confirmed in person during the pandemic. “They haven’t done virtual for that, and those are not nearly as important,” says one Democratic aide. _With reporting by Alana Abramson/Washington_ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5895544/amy-coney-barrett-covid-19/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5895544/amy-coney-barrett-covid-19/"},"headline":"Amy Coney Barrett Had COVID-19 in Recent Months, Friends of Supreme Court Pick Say","datePublished":"2020-10-02T17:28:17.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T09:16:37.063Z","description":"Amy Coney Barrett, Donald Trump's Supreme Court pick, had the coronavirus in recent months","url":"https://time.com/5895544/amy-coney-barrett-covid-19/","keywords":["Courts","Exclusive"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt99abe6c4e3456645/698a12bfb3fce37e190c7338/Amy_Coney_Barrett_26.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tessa Berenson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt99abe6c4e3456645/698a12bfb3fce37e190c7338/Amy_Coney_Barrett_26.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Amy Coney Barrett Meetings","caption":"Amy Coney Barrett Meetings","creditText":"Tom Williams—CQ-Roll Call/Sipa","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/courts/","name":"Courts"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5895544/amy-coney-barrett-covid-19/","name":"Amy Coney Barrett Had COVID-19 in Recent Months, Friends of Supreme Court Pick Say"}}]}] ```