NC lawmaker hospitalized after announcing his wife had COVID-19
N.C. Rep. Keith Kidwell is hospitalized Friday after writing on Facebook that his wife, Viki, has COVID-19.
The Beaufort County Republican Party asked people to gather at 6:30 p.m. outside the Beaufort County Hospital to pray for the Kidwells, the hospital workers and other patients.
House Speaker Tim Moore confirmed Kidwell’s hospitalization to The News & Observer Friday afternoon but when asked about Kidwell’s condition and whether he too had the virus, Moore said, “I can’t say. We are checking.”
Kidwell, 60, a Chocowinity Republican, has not voted at the General Assembly for the past two weeks and has been marked as an excused absence.
At the start of Thursday’s floor session in the House, Rep. Larry Pittman asked for prayers for the Kidwell family.
Pittman, a Concord Republican, said he texted Kidwell earlier Thursday, and Kidwell said his fever was gone but walking to the bathroom was exhausting.
“Viki is still not out of the woods, so we certainly need to keep him in our prayers,” Pittman said.
Moore responded to Pittman Thursday saying that he knew Viki Kidwell was still hospitalized and that he would later announce several other members were battling health concerns and needed prayers. Specifics of those concerns were never identified.
Kidwell has been a vocal opponent of the measures that Gov. Roy Cooper has taken to slow the COVID-19 pandemic.
He has filed lawsuits, joined ReOpen NC rallies, refused to wear a mask, spoken out against requiring vaccines and filed legislation to strip the governor of his ability to declare a state of emergency unilaterally.
Earlier this month, he signed a letter, along with 54 of his colleagues, that asked health care facilities to reconsider the vaccine requirements placed on employees.
The news of Kidwell’s hospitalization comes as the city of Raleigh announced it would begin requiring masks again at all indoor public places at 5 p.m.
On Friday, the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services reported 6,628 newly reported cases of COVID-19 with 2,483 people hospitalized and 13,826 total deaths.
As of Friday, around 58% of North Carolinians have become fully vaccinated.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
For more North Carolina government and politics news, listen to the Under the Dome politics podcast from The News & Observer and the NC Insider. You can find it at link.chtbl.com/underthedomenc or wherever you get your podcasts.
This story was originally published August 13, 2021 at 12:59 PM.
