Garcetti says he has ‘some fever and head cold symptoms’ following COVID-19 diagnosis

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has a fever and symptoms of a head cold and expects to be back in Los Angeles by next weekend, he told his staff in an email Thursday.

Garcetti, who tested positive for the coronavirus this week, is isolating in a hotel room in Glasgow, Scotland. In the email, reviewed by The Times, Garcetti told his staff that he would continue to work from his hotel.

“As some of you who have gotten COVID know, this is a beast of a virus, but I am feeling pretty good — just some fever and head cold symptoms for now, probably a reflection of the strength of the vaccine I got earlier this year,” Garcetti wrote.

The mayor, who is fully vaccinated, tested positive while attending a United Nations conference on climate change.

His message to his staff on Thursday was someone different than what he told a news station a day earlier. Garcetti told KABC-TV on Wednesday that he was”feeling great” and raised the possibility that his test result may have been a false-positive.

Garcetti is tentatively scheduled to return to Los Angeles on Nov. 13, according to a letter sent Wednesday by his interim chief of staff to Council President Nury Martinez.

California

‘This could be my room for a few days’: Garcetti tests positive, isolates in Scotland

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti tests positive for COVID-19 while at the climate summit in Scotland. The fully vaccinated mayor is ‘feeling good.’

Nov. 3, 2021

Garcetti, 50, received his first dose of the Moderna vaccine in January. According to guidelines at the time, he wasn’t in line to receive the vaccine yet, but medical personnel recommended he get the shot because he was working at Dodger Stadium as part of the city’s vaccination effort.

He received his second dose in February and plans to get a booster “as soon as it’s recommended he do so,” according to a spokesman for the mayor.

In his email Thursday, Garcetti told his staff that he would continue to be able to join staff meetings via Zoom.

The mayor also joked that he had always wanted to take a “10-day vacation to Scotland, but this isn’t exactly what I had in mind! Nevertheless, I’ll be working hard from here and wanted to let you all know that I’m fine.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that individuals who have tested positive for the coronavirus and have symptoms isolate from others for at least 10 days after signs of illness first appear. Individuals also shouldn’t be around others until they are free of fever for at least 24 hours without using a fever-reducing medication and show signs of improving symptoms.