The first cases relating to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
in
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, were reported on March 7, 2020.
The city has enacted a variety of public health measures in an attempt to curb the spread of the virus, including limiting business activities, suspending non-essential work, and closing down schools.
, the District of Columbia had administered 1,229,170 COVID-19 vaccine doses and 85% of the population had received at least one shot while 67% were fully vaccinated.
Preparations
Mayor
Muriel Bowser
Muriel Elizabeth Bowser (born August 2, 1972) is an American politician who has served as the current mayor of the District of Columbia since 2015. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, she previously represented th ...
signed an executive order on February 28, 2020, that began to prepare Washington, D.C., for coronavirus impacts. The executive order stated that the District's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) would be activated on March 2, 2020, to begin to "coordinate inter-agency information sharing and identify logistical needs for critical incident responses." It was also announced that the Washington, D.C., Department of Health and the Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency would be responsible for the response planning for COVID-19. On March 2, the D.C. Emergency Operations Center was activated at an Enhanced Watch status, per the executive order.
On March 3, Mayor Bowser, D.C. Department of Health and the D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency held a public briefing on the coronavirus and the District's monitoring, preparation, and response.
Timeline of outbreak
March 2020
March 5–7
On March 7, the first two cases of COVID-19 in Washington, D.C., were confirmed. The first case was a
rector at
Christ Church Georgetown who had not traveled outside the United States recently or had close contact with another confirmed infected coronavirus patient. He had attended the Consortium of Endowed Episcopal Parishes conference in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...
from February 19–22, then traveled back to Washington, by which time he became sick with what he thought was the flu. He then participated in church services on February 23 and March 1. The rector's condition deteriorated to the point of hospitalization, and after it was confirmed the rector contracted the virus, the church canceled services indefinitely.
The second case was a Nigerian national who traveled from Nigeria to D.C. and went to a hospital in
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
for treatment. Although the second man was being treated at a Maryland hospital, he was counted as the District's second case by the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the National public health institutes, national public health agency of the United States. It is a Federal agencies of the United States, United States federal agency under the United S ...
(CDC).
March 8–10
On March 9,
School Without Walls, a public school in
Foggy Bottom
Foggy Bottom is a neighborhood of Washington, D.C., United States, located in the city's northwest quadrant. It stretches west of the White House towards the Potomac River, north of the National Mall, east of Georgetown, south of the West ...
, was closed by
District of Columbia Public Schools
The District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) is the local public school system for Washington, D.C. It is distinct from the District of Columbia Public Charter Schools (DCPCS), which governs public charter schools in the city.
Compositi ...
(DCPS) for a full-day deep cleaning and disinfecting by a third-party contractor after an employee was exposed to COVID-19 the week before. The employee tested negative and entered a two-week quarantine. DCPS chancellor Lewis Ferebee announced the closing over Twitter the previous day.
Three more coronavirus cases in D.C. were confirmed the night of March 9, including an attendee of Christ Church Georgetown. D.C. officials recommended a two-week self-quarantine per CDC guidelines for anyone who attended Christ Church on February 24 or between February 28 and March 3. At that time, $1.5 million had been allocated to the pandemic response by the D.C. government.
On March 10,
George Washington University
The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...
announced classes will be moved online after spring break, starting on March 23 and continuing until at least April 5. In addition, all residential students were expected to no longer be living on campus beginning March 21. It was stated that an opening date would not be announced until the end of the instructional continuity period when a decision for the rest of the semester would be made.
Also on March 10,
Georgetown Day School
Georgetown Day School (GDS) is an independent coeducational PK-12 school located in Washington, D.C. The school educates 1,075 elementary, middle, and high school students in northwestern Washington, D.C. Russell Shaw is the current Head of Sch ...
, a private school, closed indefinitely and began a deep clean citing concerns about community members affiliated with
Christ Church Georgetown.
March 11–14
On March 11,
Maria Cantwell
Maria Ellen Cantwell (; born October 13, 1958) is an American politician who has been the junior United States senator from Washington since 2001. A member of the Democratic Party, she served in the Washington House of Representatives from 19 ...
, a U.S. senator from Washington state, closed her D.C. office due to one of her aides testing positive for the virus.
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...
announced that it would be moving to virtual learning entirely beginning on March 16, and while campus would remain open and key services would remain accessible the university strongly suggested that students return to their homes.
On March 12, the
United States Capitol
The United States Capitol, often called the Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the Seat of government, seat of the United States Congress, the United States Congress, legislative branch of the Federal government of the United States, federal g ...
, the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
, and the
United States Supreme Court Building
The Supreme Court Building houses the Supreme Court of the United States, the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. The building serves as the official workplace of the Chief Justice of the United States, chief justice o ...
closed to most of the public until April after several offices closed and multiple lawmakers went into precautionary quarantines.
On March 13,
DCPS announced that they will cancel classes until April 1, implementing online distance learning. Also on March 13, the
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA ), commonly referred to as Metro, is a tri-jurisdictional public transit agency that operates transit services in the Washington metropolitan area. WMATA provides rapid transit servic ...
(WMATA) escalated its operations to level 3 of its pandemic flu plan, announcing that service on the
Washington Metro
The Washington Metro, often abbreviated as the Metro and formally the Metrorail, is a rapid transit system serving the Washington metropolitan area of the United States. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority ...
would be reduced to one train every 12 minutes from Monday to Saturday and one train every 15 minutes on Sunday beginning on March 17. In addition,
Metrobus Metrobus may refer to:
Transport services Bus Rapid Transit
*MetroBus (Bristol), a bus rapid transit system in Bristol, England, United Kingdom
*Metrobus (Buenos Aires), a bus rapid transit system in Buenos Aires, Argentina
*Metrobus (Istanbul), a ...
service would change to a Saturday supplemental schedule on weekdays beginning on March 17.
Mayor
Muriel Bowser
Muriel Elizabeth Bowser (born August 2, 1972) is an American politician who has served as the current mayor of the District of Columbia since 2015. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, she previously represented th ...
held a press conference, announcing that gatherings of people over 60 years of age or with preexisting health issues would be limited to 10 people. The restriction would not apply to residences, schools, or places of work. For populations not at-risk the government promoted
social distancing
In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious dise ...
measures to limit the spread of the virus.
On March 14, Mayor Bowser issued a statement confirming 6 more positive cases in Washington, D.C., bringing the total number of cases up to 16.
March 15–16
On March 15, Bowser's office announced one more positive case in Washington D.C., bringing the total cumulative number of cases to 17. The patient in this case is a 38-year-old woman who came into contact with another case.
The Hill Restaurant Group (HRG) said on March 16 they would comply with restrictions on bars and restaurants ordered by Mayor Bowser on March 15. Tom Johnson, the managing director of the group, had earlier said he would ignore the order, saying it would force his company into bankruptcy.
On the evening of March 16, Mayor Bowser's office released an update that confirmed five more positive cases of coronavirus in the District. The patients involved were a 23-year-old man, a 42-year-old woman with a history of travel to Europe, a 54-year-old woman, a 54-year-old man, and a 56-year-old man. These five cases brought the cumulative number of cases in D.C. to 22.
March 17–18
Late on March 17, Mayor Bowser's office announced the confirmation of nine more positive cases in the District, bringing the total number of positive cases to 31. The patients were all male and between the ages of 23 and 61. The 23-year-old patient was confirmed to have attended the
Conservative Political Action Conference
The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC ) is an annual political conference attended by Conservatism in the United States, conservative Activism, activists and officials from across the United States. CPAC is hosted by the American ...
(CPAC) in
National Harbor, Maryland
National Harbor is a census-designated place (CDP) in Prince George's County, Maryland, Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, located along the Potomac River near the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and just south of Washington, D.C. It originat ...
.
On March 18, at least 8 more cases were found, including a
DC FEMS employee (leading to a quarantine of 73 firefighters), a
U.S. marshal
The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The Marshals Service serves as the enforcement and security arm of the U.S. federal judiciary. It is an agency of the U.S. Department of Jus ...
at the
Superior Court of the District of Columbia
The Superior Court of the District of Columbia, commonly referred to as DC Superior Court, is the trial court for the District of Columbia, in the United States. It hears cases involving Criminal justice, criminal, Civil law (common law), civi ...
, and an undergraduate student at the George Washington University who lives off-campus.
The
Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia
The Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia (MPDC), more commonly known locally as the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and, colloquially, DC Police, is the primary law enforcement agency for the Washington, D.C., District ...
announced new
social distancing
In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious dise ...
precautions in dealing with callers reporting flu-like symptoms as well as changes to police protocol for citations and warning notices in light of the restriction of certain services in the D.C. government.
March 19–20
As of March 19, the number of confirmed cases sharply jumped to 71 as the supply of tests was expanded, an increase of 32 over one day. This includes two more DC FEMS members and an eight-year-old.
The same day,
Washington Metro
The Washington Metro, often abbreviated as the Metro and formally the Metrorail, is a rapid transit system serving the Washington metropolitan area of the United States. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority ...
closed the
Smithsonian and
Arlington Cemetery stations until further notice. Metro ridership reduced by 85% due to the pandemic, leading to general manager
Paul Wiedefeld
Paul J. Wiedefeld (born August 19, 1955) is an American politician serving as the Maryland Department of Transportation, Maryland Secretary of Transportation under Governor Wes Moore since 2023. He was previously the general manager of Washington ...
submitting a request to Congress for emergency funding.
On March 20, Mayor Bowser announced the first death related to COVID-19 in the District, a 59-year-old man, Deacon Brother John-Sebastian Laird-Hammond,
OFM, a
Franciscan
The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...
friar
A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders in the Catholic Church. There are also friars outside of the Catholic Church, such as within the Anglican Communion. The term, first used in the 12th or 13th century, distinguishes the mendi ...
and
permanent deacon
A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions.
Major Christian denominations, such as the Catholi ...
, a native of
Minonk, Illinois, with underlying medical conditions, specifically a multi-year battle with a type of
leukemia
Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...
who had been undergoing cancer treatments and was therefore more vulnerable to the virus.
The number of cases rose to 77.
DCPS extended the school shutdown to April 24, meaning classes would be scheduled to resume on Monday, April 27. In preparation for the beginning of distance learning on March 24, the DCPS Distance Learning platform was released, publicly accessible at . Certain schools would continue to provide lunch on weekdays.
March 21–22
On March 21, the D.C. government, operating through the Metropolitan Police Department and the
National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...
announced several road closures around beginning on March 22, 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM, in an effort to reduce congregation of tourists around monuments during the
National Cherry Blossom Festival
The National Cherry Blossom Festival (, ''Zenbei Sakura Matsuri'') is a spring celebration in Washington, D.C., commemorating the March 27, 1912, gift of Japanese cherry trees from Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo City to the city of Washington, D.C. ...
. These crowds had not been conforming to social distancing guidelines and thus presented a possible vector for the transmission of coronavirus. The
DC Department of Parks and Recreation closed all of its facilities including parks, playgrounds, and athletic fields. Only dog parks remained open.
The same day,
Metrobus Metrobus may refer to:
Transport services Bus Rapid Transit
*MetroBus (Bristol), a bus rapid transit system in Bristol, England, United Kingdom
*Metrobus (Buenos Aires), a bus rapid transit system in Buenos Aires, Argentina
*Metrobus (Istanbul), a ...
announced reduced operation from 325 routes to only 20 high-use corridors. Real-time bus data would no longer be available and drivers may bypass stops in order to observe social distancing guidelines on buses.
WMATA
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA ), commonly referred to as Metro, is a tri-jurisdictional public transit agency that operates transit services in the Washington metropolitan area. WMATA provides rapid transit servic ...
said it hoped to restore some routes with limited operation hours soon. Real-time bus data would be restored on June 28, 2020.
The number of cases as of 7:30 PM that day was 98.
On March 22, the second death due to COVID-19 was reported in the District, a 65-year-old woman with underlying medical conditions.
The number of cases as of 7:00 PM that day was 116.
March 23–24
On March 23, Mayor Bowser and Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey DeWitt announced that the 2019 tax filing deadlines would be pushed to July 15, instead of the upcoming April 15. The Mayor also urged D.C. residents to remain at home except for "essential activities," clarifying that she would not be issuing a
shelter-in-place order as of now.
On that day, Mayor Bowser also commissioned Republic Restoratives Distillery and
Compass Coffee
Compass Coffee is an American coffee roaster based in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 2014 and operates in Washington, D.C., and Virginia. , the company has 18 stores.
History
The company was founded by Michael Haft in 2014. Following the ...
, two locally owned companies, for the production of of
hand sanitizer
Hand sanitizer (also known as hand antiseptic, hand disinfectant, hand rub, or handrub) is a liquid, gel, or foam used to kill viruses, bacteria, and other microorganisms on the hands. It can also come in the form of a cream, spray, or wipe. W ...
( each) for use by D.C. government workers and emergency responders.
As of 7:00 PM that day, the number of cases was 137.
March 25
On March 25, the third death in Washington, D.C., was a 75-year-old woman with underlying health conditions.
March 30
On March 30, Mayor Bowser announced a
stay-at-home order
A stay-at-home order, safer-at-home order, movement control order – also referred to by loose use of the terms quarantine, isolation, or lockdown – is an order from a government authority that restricts movements of a population as a mass qu ...
that would go into effect on April 1. The order stated that residents may only leave their residences to engage in essential activities, including obtaining medical care that cannot be provided through telehealth and obtaining food and essential household goods, to perform or access essential governmental functions, to work at essential businesses, to engage in essential travel and to engage in specific recreational activities that the order defined.
[(1) ]
(2)
Anyone found to be violating the order would be charged with a
misdemeanor
A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...
and subject to a $5,000 fine and/or 90 days in prison. Bowser said, "Staying at home is the best way to flatten the curve and protect yourself, your family, and our entire community from COVID-19."
On the same day,
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
's Governor
Larry Hogan
Lawrence Joseph Hogan Jr. (born May 25, 1956) is an American politician who served as the 62nd governor of Maryland from 2015 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party and son of three-term U.S. representative Lawrence Hogan, he served as co-ch ...
and
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
's Governor
Ralph Northam
Ralph Shearer Northam (born September 13, 1959) is an American physician and former politician who served as the 73rd governor of Virginia from 2018 to 2022. A pediatric Neurology, neurologist by occupation, he was an officer in the Medical Co ...
issued similar stay-at-home orders (see
COVID-19 pandemic in Maryland and
in Virginia). However, the penalties for violating those orders were different from those in the District.
April 2020
On April 6, Bowser announced a government-wide hiring and pay freeze to ensure the District's funds are conserved.
On April 17, DC Public Schools announced that they would remain closed for the rest of the 2019–2020 school year, with a shortened schedule ending the school year on May 29.
June 2020

During the month of June, D.C. experienced widespread protests relating to the
murder of George Floyd
On May 25, 2020, George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black American man, was murdered in Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old White police officer. Floyd had been arrested after a store clerk reported that he made a purchase using a c ...
. While numbers of protesters were in the thousands, almost all were wearing masks and there was not an appreciable spike in cases that could be traced to the protests.
On June 2, during some of the most intense demonstrations, some protesters were arrested and charged with "wearing a hood-mask" in addition to curfew violations, even though masks were mandatory at the time.
On June 22, with the move to phase 2 of the reopening plan, indoor dining was permitted to begin at 50% capacity, although bar sitting was to remain closed. Gyms were also allowed to reopen, with 5 people per .
July 2020
On July 22, Washington, D.C., imposed new mask requirements. On July 27, self-quarantine restrictions were placed on non-essential travelers arriving from 27 high-risk states.
September 2020
A cluster of COVID-19 infections emerged among people at the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
, including many
U.S. government
The Federal Government of the United States of America (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States.
The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct branches: legislative, executi ...
officials, who were in close contact with one another. Numerous high-profile individuals were infected, including President
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
, who was hospitalized for three days. At least 48
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
staff members or associates, closely working with White House personnel, tested positive.
The White House resisted efforts to engage in
contact tracing
In public health, contact tracing is the process of identifying people who may have been exposed to an infected person ("contacts") and subsequent collection of further data to assess transmission. By tracing the contacts of infected individua ...
, leaving it unclear how many people were infected in total and what the origins of the spread were.
Many of the infections appeared to be related to a ceremony held on September26 in the
Rose Garden
A rose garden or rosarium is a garden or park, often open to the public, used to present and grow various types of garden roses, and sometimes rose species. Designs vary tremendously and roses may be displayed alongside other plants or grouped ...
for
the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, where seating was not
socially distanced and participants were mostly unmasked. Trump himself may have been infectious at that point, but he and his entourage attended several subsequent events unmasked, including
the first presidential debate against
Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
in
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...
on September 29. The next day, Presidential Counselor
Hope Hicks was placed in quarantine aboard
Air Force One
Air Force One is the official air traffic control-designated Aviation call signs, call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. The term is commonly used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modifie ...
while returning with Trump from a campaign event in
Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
. Following that, the president proceeded on schedule to an October 1
New Jersey
New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
fundraiser where he mingled, unmasked, with donors. More infections were reported in late October among Vice President
Mike Pence
Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...
's staff, and a second large outbreak occurred after
Election Day
Election day or polling day is the day on which general elections are held. In many countries, general elections are always held on a Saturday or Sunday, to enable as many voters as possible to participate; while in other countries elections ...
, after Trump held a watch party in the
East Room
The East Room is an event and reception room in the Executive Residence of the White House complex, the home of the president of the United States. The East Room is the largest room in the Executive Residence; it is used for dances, receptions, p ...
.
Other infections included First Lady
Melania Trump
Melania Knauss Trump (born Melanija Knavs, April26, 1970) is a Slovenian and American former model who is married to U.S. President Donald Trump. Since 2025, Melania Trump has served as the first lady of the United States, a role she previous ...
;
GOP
The Republican Party, also known as the Grand Old Party (GOP), is a right-wing political party in the United States. One of the two major parties, it emerged as the main rival of the then-dominant Democratic Party in the 1850s, and the tw ...
Senators
Thom Tillis
Thomas Roland Tillis ( ; born August 30, 1960) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from North Carolina, a seat he has held since 2015. A member of the Republican Party, Tillis served in the North Carolina House ...
,
Mike Lee
Michael Shumway Lee (born June 4, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Utah, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, Lee became Utah's senior senator in 2019, whe ...
, and
Ron Johnson
Ronald Harold Johnson (born April 8, 1955) is an American businessman and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Wisconsin, a seat he has held since 2011. A Rep ...
; GOP Representative
Matt Gaetz
Matthew Louis Gaetz II ( ; born May 7, 1982) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the U.S. representative for from 2017 until his resignation in 2024. His district included all of Escambia, Okaloosa, and Santa Rosa counties, ...
;
Trump campaign manager
Bill Stepien;
RNC Chair
Ronna McDaniel
Ronna Romney McDaniel ( Romney; born March 20, 1973) is an American political strategist who served as chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) from 2017 until her resignation in 2024. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Rep ...
; former White House counselor
Kellyanne Conway
Kellyanne Elizabeth Conway (née Fitzpatrick; born January 20, 1967) is an American political consultant and pollster who served as Senior Counselor to the President in the first presidency of Donald Trump for three years from 2017 and 2020. ...
; former New Jersey Governor
Chris Christie
Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...
;
Notre Dame president
John I. Jenkins; Press Secretary
Kayleigh McEnany
Kayleigh Michelle McEnany (; born April 18, 1988) is an American conservative political commentator, television personality, and writer who served as the 33rd White House press secretary under Donald Trump from April 2020 to January 2021.
Ear ...
; presidential advisor
Stephen Miller; Chief of Staff
Mark Meadows
Mark Randall Meadows (born July 28, 1959) is an American politician who served as the 29th White House chief of staff from 2020 to 2021 under the Trump administration. A member of the Republican Party, he also served as the U.S. representat ...
; and Housing and Urban Development Secretary
Ben Carson
Ben Solomon Carson Sr. (born September 18, 1951) is an American retired neurosurgery, neurosurgeon, academic, author, and government official who served as the 17th United States secretary of housing and urban development from 2017 to 2021. A pio ...
. As of November 11, at least 48 people had tested positive.
At least one person, White House security office head Crede Bailey, was reported as "gravely ill."
October 2020
On October 5, DC Public Schools announced an updated reopening plan, with certain elementary students having an option of in-person or virtual learning starting on November 9, with secondary schools remaining as virtual instruction until February 1.
However, the mayor and school chancellor, Lewis Ferebee, had developed the plan without informing the various faculty unions or asking for input, and the union maintains that the schools are not ready to be reopened.
January 2021
On January 15, organizers of the annual
March for Life announced that the 2021 march, scheduled for January 29, would be moved online due to the pandemic, as well as a security measure following the
2021 storming of the United States Capitol
On January 6, 2021, the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of supporters of President Donald Trump in an attempted self-coup,Multiple sources:
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* two months after his defea ...
.
On January 19, a memorial service was held at the
Lincoln Memorial
The Lincoln Memorial is a List of national memorials of the United States, U.S. national memorial honoring Abraham Lincoln, the List of presidents of the United States, 16th president of the United States, located on the western end of the Nati ...
, to commemorate nearly 400,000 citizens of the United States who died of the virus. President-elect
Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
and Vice President-elect
Kamala Harris
Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...
attended, and Catholic Archbishop of Washington, DC, Cardinal
Wilton Daniel Gregory
Wilton Daniel Gregory Jr. (born December 7, 1947) is an Catholic Church in the United States, American Catholic prelate who served as Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, archbishop of Washington from 2019 to 2025. Pope Francis made him a ...
, gave the invocation.
February 2021
The 117th Congress held a moment of silence and vigil in memory of those who died of COVID-19 on February 23.
Projections
A number of organizations have produced models that project the trajectory of the coronavirus outbreak.
The
Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation
The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) is a public health research institute of the University of Washington in Seattle. Its research fields are global health statistics and impact evaluation.
IHME is headed by Christopher J.L. ...
at the
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...
in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
has constructed one of these (the IHME). Penn Medicine, a
consortium
A consortium () is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations, or governments (or any combination of these entities) with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a ...
of the
Perelman School of Medicine
The Perelman School of Medicine (commonly known as Penn Med) is the medical school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private, Ivy League research university located in Philadelphia. Founded in 1765, the Perelman School of Medicine is the olde ...
and the
University of Pennsylvania Health System
The University of Pennsylvania Health System (UPHS) is a major multi-hospital health system headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. UPHS and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania together comprise Penn Medicine, ...
in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
, has constructed another, the COVID-19 Hospital Impact Model for Epidemics (CHIME).
Among other things, the two models differ in the methods by which they calculate the effectiveness of
social distancing
In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious dise ...
in reducing the number of new COVID-19 infections.
The District is using the IHME as a best-case scenario and the more conservative CHIME to prepare for a surge that its planners consider to be more likely.
[
As of April 3, the CHIME was projecting that the peak hospital impact of the COVID-19 outbreak would occur in the District at the end of June.][ On April 5, an update to the IHME model revised that model's forecasts.][ The revised model suggests that the District will experience the peak of its outbreak on April 16.][
]
Concerns in relation to the January 6 U.S. Capitol attack
Public health experts said that the storming of the Capitol was a potential superspreader event. Activist Tim "Baked Alaska
Baked Alaska, also known as Bombe Alaska, ''omelette norvégienne, omelette surprise,'' or ''omelette sibérienne'' depending on the country, is a dessert consisting of ice cream and cake topped with browned meringue. The dish is made of ice cre ...
" Gionet participated in the riot despite a recent positive diagnosis, and few members of the crowd wore face coverings, with many coming from out of town. Anthony Fauci
Anthony Stephen Fauci ( ; born December 24, 1940) is an American physician-scientist and immunologist who served as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) from 1984 to 2022, and the chief medical ...
, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID, ) is one of the 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. NIAID's mis ...
and lead member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force
The White House Coronavirus Task Force was the United States Department of State task force during the Trump administration. The goal of the Task Force was to coordinate and oversee the administration's efforts to monitor, prevent, contain, and ...
, said that the rioters' failure to "adhere to the fundamentals of public health" to prevent the spread of COVID-19—such as "universal wearing of masks, keeping physical distance, ndavoiding crowds in congregate settings"—placed them at risk. The day after the event, Eric Toner, a senior scholar from the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, said the storming of the Capitol was "extraordinarily dangerous" from a public-health perspective.
As many as 200 congressional staff
Congressional staff are employees of a legislative Congress who support legislators in their duties. They handle a variety of tasks, including policy research, constituent services, communications, and administrative support. Staffers may work ...
ers reportedly sheltered in various rooms inside the Capitol, further increasing the risk of transmission. Brian P. Monahan, the attending physician of Congress, reported that members of Congress who were in protective isolation during the attack, some for several hours, may have been exposed to others with COVID-19; Monahan advised members to take protective measures, monitor for symptoms, and take a precautionary RT-PCR
Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is a laboratory technique combining reverse transcription of RNA into DNA (in this context called complementary DNA or cDNA) and amplification of specific DNA targets using polymerase chain ...
test
Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to:
* Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities
Arts and entertainment
* ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film
* ''Test'' (2014 film) ...
.
A video of members of Congress sheltering in place shows a group of maskless Republicans, including Andy Biggs
Andrew Steven Biggs (born November 7, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician who represents in the United States House of Representatives. The district, which was once represented by U.S. Senators John McCain and Jeff Flake, is in the he ...
, Scott Perry
Scott Gordon Perry (born May 27, 1962) is an American politician and retired Army National Guard brigadier general who is the U.S. representative for , serving since 2013. The district, numbered as from 2013 to 2019, is centered around Harrisb ...
, Michael Cloud
Michael Jonathan Cloud (born May 13, 1975) is an American politician representing Texas's 27th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives since 2018. He is a member of the Republican Party.
Cloud is a member of the n ...
and Markwayne Mullin
Markwayne Mullin (born July 26, 1977) is an American and Cherokee Nation, Cherokee businessman and politician who has served as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from Oklahoma since 2023 ...
, refusing masks offered by Representative Lisa Blunt Rochester
Lisa LaTrelle Blunt Rochester (née Blunt; born February 10, 1962) is an American politician serving since 2025 as the junior United States senator from Delaware. From 2017 to 2025, she served as the U.S. representative for . A member of the ...
; Blunt Rochester later wrote that she was "disappointed in my colleagues who refused to wear a mask" but "encouraged by those who did." On January 12, a bill was introduced in the House to impose a $500 fine the first day members refuse to wear a mask on the floor and a $2,500 fine for the second time. The money would be deducted from the offending members and staffers pay.
Representative Jacob LaTurner tested positive after the lockdown was lifted, and, as a result, was absent from the House floor when the Electoral College certification resumed. Starting January11, four members of Congress, Representatives Bonnie Watson Coleman
Bonnie Marie Watson Coleman (born February 6, 1945) is an American politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for New Jersey's 12th congressional district since 2015. A member of the Democratic Party (U ...
, Pramila Jayapal
Pramila Jayapal (born September 21, 1965) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative from since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she represents most of Seattle, as well as some suburban areas of King County. Jayapal ...
, Brad Schneider
Bradley Scott Schneider (born August 20, 1961) is an American businessman and politician who has served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for Illinois's 10th congressional district since 2017 and also served fro ...
and Adriano Espaillat
Adriano de Jesús Espaillat Rodríguez ( ; born September 27, 1954) is a Dominican-American politician who has served as the U.S. representative for since 2017. He is the first Dominican American and first formerly undocumented immigrant to se ...
tested positive after being exposed to maskless members of Congress during the lockdown. All had gone into isolation while awaiting testing results. Jayapal condemned Republican colleagues who, while sheltering in place during the riots, "not only cruelly refused to wear a mask but mocked colleagues and staff who offered them one." After sheltering in the same room on January 6, Conan Harris, husband of Representative Ayanna Pressley
Ayanna Soyini Pressley (born February 3, 1974) is an American politician who has served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for Massachusetts's 7th congressional district since 2019. This district, which was once re ...
, tested positive on the night of January 12, putting both Harris and Presley into quarantine.
More than two weeks after the storming, 38 Capitol Police officers tested positive for the virus. However, it was unclear how many of them were on duty during the event or when they contracted it. On January 25, the commander of the District of Columbia National Guard, Major General William Walker, said that nearly 200 troops deployed to the capital had tested positive for COVID-19. The number of cases had risen by nearly five times from the 45 cases reported on January 15.
Statistics
Government response
On March 11, Mayor Muriel Bowser declared a state of emergency for the District of Columbia. The declaration allowed Bowser to request federal disaster funds and to address price gouging. The order also gave her additional authorities, including the ordering of quarantines without court approval.
On March 16, the District government suspended on-site bar and restaurant service and shut down movie theaters and gyms. Restaurants could still offer food for carryout and delivery, but customers could not dine in.
On March 20, Mayor Bowser issued an order that prohibited mass gatherings of 50 or more people. The order also prohibited table service and service to standing customers at restaurants, bars and multi-purpose facilities, including seated, fast food and fast casual restaurants. Those businesses could only operate for take-out, "grab-and-go" and delivery operations.[(1) ]
(2)
The Mayor's March 20 order also required nightclubs, health clubs, health spas, massage parlors, and theaters to continue their suspension of operations, which the District's government had initially ordered on March 17. The order further closed to the public all facilities that the District's Department of Recreation operated, including playgrounds, parks, and athletic fields.
The District of Columbia Medical Reserve Corps (DC MRC), a volunteer organization under the District of Columbia Department of Health, was mobilized to aid emergency workers in responding to the coronavirus pandemic throughout D.C. On March 21, Mayor Bowser called for more volunteers to join the task force.
On March 24, Mayor Bowser issued an order "to temporarily cease all non-essential business activities, including tour guides and touring services; gyms, health clubs, spas, and massage establishments; theaters, auditoriums, and other places of large gatherings; nightclubs; hair, nail, and tanning salons and barbershops; tattoo parlors; sales not involved in essential services; retail clothing stores; and professional services not devoted to assisting essential business operations."
Bowser's March 24 order defined "Construction and Building Trades" as "essential businesses", but did not define private construction projects themselves as being "essential". However, The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
reported on March 28 that the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia had designated construction as "essential," along with hospitals, grocery stores, banks and several other types of businesses. The ''Post'' reported that each of these jurisdictions had allowed private construction, including home building and commercial developments, to continue.
The ''Post'' reported that John Falcicchio, Bowser's chief of staff, had stated that the District, Maryland and Virginia had agreed to follow the federal guidance declaring construction to be essential work. However, the ''Post'' reported that several states, including Pennsylvania and Vermont, had suspended or prohibited all construction work (except for emergencies) as unnecessary during a public health crisis. The Post further reported that the State of Washington's transportation department had suspended work on nearly all of its projects and that Washington's governor had clarified his stay-at-home order to state that commercial and residential construction were generally prohibited "because construction is not considered to be an essential activity."[
The ]United States Department of Homeland Security
The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the Interior minister, interior, Home Secretary ...
's March 28 guidance on essential critical infrastructure lists as "essential" the construction of residential/shelter facilities and services (see "essential services
Essential services may refer to a class of occupations that have been legislated by a government to have special restrictions in regard to labour actions such as not being allowed to strike.
The International Labour Office, a United Nations ag ...
"), energy-related facilities, communications, and information technology, public works including the construction of critical or strategic infrastructure and infrastructure that is temporarily required to support COVID-19 response, is for certain other types of community- or government-based operations or is otherwise critical, strategic, or essential. The guidance does not contain any such listings for other types of construction.
On March 30, Bowser announced a stay-at-home order that would go into effect on April 1. The order stated that residents may only leave their residences to engage in essential activities, including obtaining medical care that cannot be provided through telehealth and obtaining food and essential household goods, to perform or access essential governmental functions, to work at essential businesses, to engage in essential travel and to engage in specific recreational activities that the order defined. Anyone found to be violating the order would be charged with a misdemeanor
A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...
and subject to a $5,000 fine and/or 90 days in prison.[
]
Schools
On March 13, District of Columbia Public Schools
The District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) is the local public school system for Washington, D.C. It is distinct from the District of Columbia Public Charter Schools (DCPCS), which governs public charter schools in the city.
Compositi ...
(DCPS) shut down schools from March 16 to March 31. March 16 was reserved for professional development for teachers in preparation for the implementation of distance learning
Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance; today, it usually involves online ...
. The April Spring Break period was moved to March 17 to March 23, after which classes were set to resume online. DCPS-sponsored out-of-state travel for students was suspended until May 1 and staff travel was restricted. During the closure, several schools were set to offer meals to students from 10 am to 2 pm on weekdays.
D.C. Public Schools have an all-virtual start to the 2020–21 school year for students in pre-K through the 12th grade, from August 31 to at least November 6. On October 5, DC Public Schools announced an updated reopening plan, with certain elementary students having an option of in-person or virtual learning starting on November 9, with secondary schools remaining as virtual instruction until February 1. However, the mayor and school chancellor, Lewis Ferebee, had developed the plan without informing the various faculty unions or asking for input, and the union maintains that the schools are not ready to be reopened.
Impact on sports
The pandemic affected several sports in the district. On March 12, Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
cancelled the remainder of spring training
Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...
, and on March 16, they announced that the season will be postponed indefinitely, after the recommendations from the CDC
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and is headquartered in Atlanta, ...
to restrict events of more than 50 people for the next eight weeks, affecting the Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...
. Also on March 12, the National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
announced the season would be suspended for 30 days, affecting the Washington Wizards
The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...
. In the National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
, the season was suspended for an indefinite amount of time, affecting the Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The Capitals compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NH ...
.[NHL statement on coronavirus]
NHL, March 12, 2020
In college sports, the National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
cancelled all winter and spring tournaments, most notably the Division I men
A man is an adult male human. Before adulthood, a male child or adolescent is referred to as a boy.
Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromosome from the fa ...
's and women
A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or adolescent is referred to as a girl.
Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functional u ...
's basketball tournaments, affecting colleges and universities districtwide.[NCAA cancels remaining winter and spring championships]
NCAA, March 12, 2020 On March 16, the National Junior College Athletic Association
The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) is the governing association of community college, state college, and junior college athletics throughout the United States. Currently the NJCAA holds 24 separate regions across 24 states ...
also canceled the remainder of the winter seasons as well as the spring seasons.NJCAA cancels spring sports, basketball nationals amid coronavirus outbreak
MLive.com, March 16, 2020
See also
* COVID-19 pandemic in Maryland – for impact on Maryland counties in the Washington metropolitan area
* COVID-19 pandemic in Virginia – for impact on Virginia counties in the Washington metropolitan area
* COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
On December 31, 2019, China announced the discovery of a cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan. The first American case was reported on January 20, and United States Department of Health and Human Services, Health and Human Services Secreta ...
– for impact on the country
* COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
– for impact on other countries
References
External links
Coronavirus information
from the Government of the District of Columbia
The District of Columbia, commonly known as Washington, D.C., has a mayor–council government that operates under Article One of the United States Constitution and the District of Columbia Home Rule Act. The Home Rule Act devolves certain pow ...
{{Portal bar, COVID-19, Medicine, United States, Viruses
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
2020 in Washington, D.C.
2021 in Washington, D.C.
Disasters in Washington, D.C.
Health in Washington, D.C.