Washington, October 2: Amy Coney Barrett, the US Supreme Court nominee, had contracted COVID-19 infection earlier this year, reports said on Friday. The 48-year-old had recovered from the infection shortly after testing positive in summer. The reports came shortly after President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were diagnosed with COVID-19. 'Doomsday Planes' Fly Off US Coast as Donald Trump Tests COVID-19 Positive, Experts See 'Warning' to Adversaries.

While the news has not been official confirmed, three top sources linked to Barrett have told The Washington Post that she had tested positive after the pandemic broke out in the US, and has recovered since then. Two of the sources told the publication that she was infected in early summer.

The White House did not specifically react to the media reports so far. The US 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, where Barrett is currently a judge, also did not confirm the reports of her being tested positive earlier this year.

Barrett is set to replace late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the iconic liberal judge of the apex American judicial council, who died last month. Trump went ahead with announcing her successor despite Ginsburg expressing her wish on the deathbed that she should be replaced only after the presidential polls.

Since Barrett is now the Supreme Court nominee, she is being tested on daily basis for COVID-19 by the authorities. She had last met with President Trump on Saturday, and has since tested negative for coronavirus.

Over the past week, she had also met with Utah Senator Mike Lee and Notre Dame University president John I. Jenkins -- both of whom were later found COVID-19 positive. The SC nominee has also held one-to-one interactions with nearly 30 Senators.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 03, 2020 12:21 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).