Mike Pence's staffer tests positive for coronavirus, first from White House

A staffer in the team of US Vice President Mike Pence has tested positive for the coronavirus, making him the first White House personnel to have been infected by the deadly disease that has so far claimed the lives of 230 people in the country.

"This evening we were notified that a member of the office of the Vice President tested positive for the coronavirus," Katie Miller, Press Secretary to Vice President, said in a statement.

Neither President Donald Trump nor Vice President Pence had close contact with the individual, she said.

"Further contact tracing is being conducted in accordance with CDC guidelines,"