This Article is From Apr 01, 2020

Top Russian Doctor Diagnosed With Coronavirus Met Putin Last Week

Coronavirus Russia: Putin visited the Kommunarka hospital last Tuesday where he chatted to the doctor, Denis Protsenko.

Top Russian Doctor Diagnosed With Coronavirus Met Putin Last Week

Russia Coronavirus: Denis Protsenko wrote on Facebook that he has isolated himself.

Moscow:

A doctor who gave Russian President Vladimir Putin a tour of Moscow's main coronavirus hospital last week said on Tuesday he had himself been diagnosed with coronavirus.

Putin visited the Kommunarka hospital last Tuesday where he chatted to the doctor, Denis Protsenko. Neither man was wearing protective equipment during their conversation, TV footage from the visit showed.

Denis Protsenko, writing on Facebook said: "Yes, I have tested positive for coronavirus, but I feel pretty good. I've isolated myself in my office. I think the immunity I've developed this month is doing its job."

The Kremlin said that Putin was being regularly tested for coronavirus and that "everything is okay," the RIA news agency reported.

It has previously said that Putin is being protected from viruses and other illnesses "around the clock".

Putin donned a hazmat suit and a respirator during his visit to the hospital last week when dropping in on patients. But he did not have his protective gear on during a meeting with Denis Protsenko, with whom he was photographed shaking hands.

The Kremlin reported a coronavirus case in Putin's administration on Friday, but said the person in question had not come into contact with the president and that all measures were being taken to prevent the virus from spreading further.

Russian lawmakers on Tuesday granted the government powers to declare a national emergency over the coronavirus, and approved penalties for violations of lockdown rules including, in extreme cases, jail terms of up to seven years.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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