‘Not looking to preach.’ Hollywood mayor posts on Facebook about how he got COVID-19

Hollywood Mayor Josh Levy said he tested positive for COVID-19 after going out to dinner last week with a friend who had the coronavirus but was asymptomatic.

In a Facebook post Wednesday night, Levy said his symptoms were mild, but he was sharing the news to remind others that the risk of contracting the respiratory virus is “greatly elevated” when sharing a meal with someone outside of the immediate members of a household.

“Sharing this with you just in the hope of reminding everyone (like I should have reminded myself last week) that sitting for a meal with someone who is not a member of your household (whether at home or at a restaurant) is really one of the only times these days that we are not wearing a mask for an extended period of time,” Levy said.

“And the risk of getting COVID in that situation is greatly elevated if the person you’re eating with has the virus,” he added.

Levy, a registered Democrat, said he had a fever, body aches and mild chest pain starting on Saturday, four days after the dinner. While he said he was getting “progressively better,” he said he still had a slight headache, mild dizziness and a hoarse voice.

“As an unknowing carrier, they passed the virus to two other people before they developed symptoms that prompted them to quarantine, get tested, and call everyone they’d come in contact with to alert them of their exposure,” Levy said.

“Not looking to preach, just to inform,” he said.