WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – U.S. Defense secretary Lloyd Austin had mild symptoms on Sunday and was diagnosed with COVID-19. All authorities would remain in place as he was quarantined home for the next five day.

Austin is currently vaccinated, and has had a booster. He stated in a statement that he met President Joe Biden last Dec. 21st, more than one week prior to he began experiencing symptoms.

“As my doctor made clear to me, my fully vaccinated status — and the booster I received in early October — have rendered the infection much more mild than it would otherwise have been,” Austin added.

Austin claimed that he sought a test on Sunday morning after experiencing symptoms at home while on vacation.

A sharp rise in COVID-19-related infections has been caused by the rapid spread of Omicron, a highly transmissible Omicron variant.

A Reuters count shows that the U.S. government registered at most 346,869 cases of new coronaviruses on Saturday. According to Reuters, the death toll in America from COVID-19 increased by at least 377 to 828,562.

“I will attempt to participate virtually in the next week’s key meetings and discussions to help me with my situational awareness, decision-making, and to support it. Austin stated that he would retain all authority.

Kathleen Hicks would be his representative in certain matters, he said.