US Vice President Kamala Harris arrives in Paris, France on November 9, 2021.?Photo: AFP

US Vice President Kamala Harris tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday but is asymptomatic and not considered a current close contact of President Joe Biden, the White House said in a statement.

"Today, Vice President Harris tested positive for COVID-19 on rapid and PCR tests. She has exhibited no symptoms, will isolate and continue to work from the vice president's residence," said Harris' press secretary, Kirsten Allen.

"She has not been a close contact to the president or first lady due to their respective recent travel schedules," Allen said in a statement, adding that Harris would "return to the White House when she tests negative."

Biden spoke with Harris by phone, and he "wanted to check in and make sure she has everything she needs as she quarantines at home," a White House statement said.

Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Biden, 79, tested negative for COVID-19 on Monday.

Harris, 57, is the latest in a rash of cases sweeping through the Washington elite, with multiple members of Congress also announcing positive tests on Tuesday.

The vice president's husband, Doug Emhoff, came down with COVID-19 in March, although Harris herself remained negative.

As infections from the virulent, but dramatically less dangerous, Omicron variant of the coronavirus mount, the White House has publicly aired the possibility of Biden testing positive - while downplaying any potential fallout.

AFP