Tiffany Haddish reveals she tested positive for COVID-19, discusses her diagnosis with Dr. Anthony Fauci

Actress and Comedian Tiffany Haddish recently opened up about the time she was tested positive for Covid-19. In a recent Youtube video posted on her channel, The Girls Trip actress interviewed National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease head, Dr. Anthony Fauci. During their conversation, Tiffany revealed that she was tested positive and opened up about her experiences with testing, (12 times!) and learning her diagnosis.

“I was working on a movie and someone in the movie contracted coronavirus,” Haddish told Fauci. “I was not in direct contact with them. But they sent all of us home and we stopped the movie. They suggested I go get tested,” explained the actress. “I got tested, got the results back two days later, they said I didn’t have the coronavirus.”

“I stayed away from everybody”

But Haddish was still not in the clear. The actress was urged to go get tested again after learning that someone in her circle had tested positive for COVID-19. “Get the tests the second time,” she said. “I’m not feeling any symptoms or anything, and it comes back like two days later, and they said I did have the coronavirus.”

The actress went on to explain that although she didn’t show the symptoms, she followed the proper procedure and remained in quarantine with her dogs. “I stayed away from everybody. Just stayed in my house, me and my dogs, and I practiced learning how to do the splits. And now I can do the splits,” she joked.

“I’ve been tested 12 times now”

Haddish also spoke about her experience with getting tested multiple times. “I went and tested again, and didn’t have the virus. And then I got tested for antibodies, they said I had antibodies,” Haddish explained. “That was three months ago, I’ve been tested 12 times now because I’ve been working and everything.”

The actress subjected herself to multiple rounds of coronavirus testing. “Then I get tested again, no virus. And then I had them test me for antibodies again, and they said I don’t have any antibodies,” she added. “So I think I’m superhuman,” she added playfully.

“You should not assume, Tiffany, that you are completely protected”

Dr. Fauci explained that her ‘antibodies are gone because they probably had a very short half life.’

“What I can tell you almost for sure, Tiffany, is that you have some residual immunity. Probably T cells that are being able to protect you,’ he added. Although Haddish may have built up some immunity against the novel coronavirus, Fauci warned her that because the virus is so new, ‘we don’t know how long you’re protected’ from it. ‘You should not assume, Tiffany, that you are completely protected.’

During their chat, Fauci and Haddish also discussed coronavirus vaccine efforts, the way the virus specifically affects the African American community. Ways people can protect themselves, and more.

“It could even be from talking”

Earlier in the interview, Dr. Fauci also cleared up some of the misconceptions and myths that many people have about the coronavirus and how it’s transmitted.

“It’s a respiratory-borne virus. So it’s transmitted from one person to another by very microscopic respiratory secretions,” he explained. “And that could be, this is important, that I think people don’t understand, that certainly could be from coughing or sneezing. But it could even be from talking.”

Fauci, who is the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, offered some helpful tips on how to stay safe during these unprecedented times. The doctor said the best way to prevent getting the coronavirus was to wear “a mask” and practice “physical distancing.”

“Sit a certain distance away and avoid crowds,” he said, adding that the best way to boost an immune system was to “lead a healthy life.”

“Get good sleep,” Fauci said. “Exercise. Those are the best things that are so much better than a bunch of herbs that really have never really been shown to do that.”