Minister Melanie Joly says she has tested positive for COVID-19

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly has tested positive for COVID-19, she said on Twitter Monday.

Joly said she got a positive result after taking a rapid test and is currently in isolation.

“[I] will continue working virtually, as I have been for a number of days, until I get the results of my PCR test,” she said.

Joly said she is “grateful for the protection that vaccines offer us,” and encourages Canadians to still get their shots.

“It’s the best thing we can do to keep our families safe this holiday season,” she said.

She warned that testing alone doesn’t protect Canadians from getting the virus, and recommends to still follow public health guidelines.

Joly, 42, was named foreign minister in October and is one of the most prominent Canadian politicians to come down with the virus.

A number of public figures have tested positive for COVID-19 since the pandemic began, including Toronto Police Chief James Ramer on Friday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s wife Sophie Grégoire Trudeau in March 2020 and the deputy minister of Global Affairs Canada, Marta Morgan, in April 2020.

Joly’s positive result comes as Canada is seeing an uptick in COVID-19 cases driven by the Omicron variant.

2:44 Omicron COVID-19 variant growing faster than Delta, vaccinated could become infected or reinfected: WHO

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