Sen. Klobuchar’s husband gives plasma in hopes of helping COVID-19 patients recover

John Bessler, Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s husband, recently recovered from COVID-19, and on Saturday he donated plasma as part of the Mayo Clinic’s program to help others recover.

Klobuchar said once her husband got to the hospital, he learned he had serious pneumonia and his blood oxygen level was at 70%. He stayed in the hospital for five days. It took them six days to get the test results, which confirmed Bessler had COVID-19.

Sen. Klobuchar’s husband released from hospital, recovering at home after testing positive for COVID-19

Now that he’s recovered, he’s helping others. He was the seventh person to donate plasma as part of Mayo Clinic’s COVID-19 treatment program.

The plasma contains antibodies, which doctors say can help fight the coronavirus. Bessler said he was told the dose of plasma he gave would be enough to help two people.

Mayo Clinic studying use of plasma from recovered patients in fighting COVID-19

"We’re seeing more and more people get COVID-19 get over it, recover, that we can have more and more people give plasma to hospitals and blood centers around the country — it will really help fight this disease," Bessler said.

Klobuchar said there is one lingering symptom now that her husband has recovered.

"The one lingering symptom is that he can’t clean the basement … because he says it has too much dust," she said jokingly.