After testing positive for the disease, GOP Senator Lindsey Graham praised the Covid vaccine Monday, stating that his symptoms would have been "far worse" without it.Graham, 66, stated in a tweet, that Graham was notified by the House physician that he had tested positive even though he had been fully-vaccinated. According to the South Carolina Republican, he began experiencing flu-like symptoms on Saturday night and will be in quarantine for 10 days.According to a Politico reporter, Graham was seen wearing a mask Monday even though the Senate has not yet issued a mandate for a mask.Graham began to experience symptoms while the Senate was working on the bipartisan Infrastructure bill. Graham is not known if any other senators were in close proximity.NBC News confirmed that Graham was present at a Saturday night party aboard Democratic Senator Joe Manchin's houseboat. Although the West Virginia senator did not confirm that Graham was present, Sam Runyon spokeswoman for Manchin and said that Manchin is fully vaccinated as well as following the CDC guidelines for individuals who have been exposed to COVID.The CDC states that these guidelines require testing within three to five days of exposure to confirmed or suspected Covid. They also recommend wearing a mask indoors for at least 14 days until the test is negative. If they are positive, fully vaccinated people should be isolated.Graham was one 17 Republican senators that voted last week to approve the infrastructure plan. If a final vote is near, Graham's absence or quarantine could impact the bill's passage.The Senate has not reinstituted a mask mandate. However, House Republicans strongly oppose a renewed mask requirement in their chamber. The House has four times more members than the Senate, and a greater proportion of unvaccinated legislators.Graham's announcement was made as the United States struggles with the rise of Covid delta and the Biden administration encourages more people to get vaccinated.In a confidential document, the CDC warned Thursday that the Delta variant of the disease, now the predominant form in the U.S., was as contagious and as contagious to chickenpox as the original Covid strain.Officials from the Health Department stated that Covid vaccines can prevent over 90% of serious diseases, but are less effective in preventing infection.CNBC reviewed the confidential document and found that 35,000 symptomatic cases are reported each week in 162 million Americans who were vaccinated.According to CDC data, 5,914 people who had been fully vaccinated were hospitalized or killed by Covid infection as of July 19. However, health officials also noted that most people who are hospitalized or die from Covid infections are not vaccinated and that there are more mild cases among those who have been vaccinated.A Monmouth University poll shows a split in the partisanship of Covid vaccine hesitancy.Survey results showed that 17% of respondents were likely to oppose the vaccine. 70% of respondents identified with the Republican Party or were inclined to it, while only 6% identified with Democrats.As the United States prepares to see an increase in Delta Covid infections this fall, the Biden administration continues to push for more Americans getting vaccinated.Monday's achievement by the U.S. of Biden's May goal of 70% vaccination of adults in the United States was about one month short of the original July goal.According to CDC, the average U.S. vaccination rate is 600,000. Although this is still far below the 3 million shots per day in mid-April and up 14% over the week before, it's still a significant increase.Biden announced last week that federal employees will have to show proof of Covid vaccination or comply with safety protocols.This report was contributed by CNBC's Berkeley Lovelace Jr., and Jacob PramukThis story is still in development. Keep checking back for more updates.
