Former US President Donald Trump was sicker with COVID-19 in October than publicly acknowledged at the time, four people familiar with his condition told The New York Times on Thursday.
According to the report, Trump had extremely depressed blood oxygen levels at one point and a lung problem associated with pneumonia caused by the coronavirus.
His prognosis became so worrisome before he was taken to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center that officials believed he would need to be put on a ventilator, two of the people familiar with his condition said.
The sources said Trump was found to have lung infiltrates, which occur when the lungs are inflamed and contain substances such as fluid or bacteria.
Trump’s blood oxygen level alone was cause for extreme concern, dipping into the 80s, according to the people familiar with his evaluation. The disease is considered severe when the blood oxygen level falls to the low 90s.
The former President reportedly resisted being taken from the White House to Walter Reed, relenting when aides told him that he could walk out on his own, or risk waiting until the US Secret Service was forced to carry him out if he got sicker, two people familiar with the events said.
A person close to the former president denied that he had been seriously ill, echoing comments Trump himself made after he was sick.