Texas Gov. Abbott tests positive for COVID-19

Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Tuesday tested positive for COVID-19.

His office said in a statement that Abbott is isolating and receiving a monoclonal antibody treatment.

The Republican governor - who has tried to block local officials in Texas from mandating mask wearing - is not experiencing symptoms, according to the statement… which read, "Governor Abbott is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, in good health, and currently experiencing no symptoms. Everyone that the Governor has been in close contact with today has been notified. Texas First Lady Cecilia Abbott tested negative.”

The governor’s positive test result comes as the highly infectious Delta variant continues to rampage across Texas and other states with low levels of vaccinations.

Many Republicans - including Abbott and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis - have said that wearing masks should be a personal choice… and that parents should decide what’s best for their children instead of the government. Both have worked to ban mask mandates.

In Florida, the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients is the highest its ever been, according to data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

And new COVID-19 cases in the U.S. have jumped about 81% over the past 14 days, according to a Reuters tally.