Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky drew the ire of his Senate colleagues once it emerged he refused to practice social distancing after testing for the coronavirus.

The Republican senator was asymptomatic when he took the test, and he said he left the Senate "immediately" after finding out he had COVID-19.

Paul issued a lengthy statement on Monday to address the timeline of events and the outrage he's facing.

"The current guidelines would not have called for me to get tested nor quarantined," Paul said. "It was my extra precaution, out of concern for my damaged lung, that led me to get tested."

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Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky on Monday hit back at the criticism he's been facing since he tested positive for COVID-19 over the weekend in a lengthy statement.

Paul, 57, took a test for the coronavirus last week despite not having symptoms.

Guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says only those with symptoms, an underlying health condition, or a confirmed contact with someone who had COVID-19 merit a test, but Paul said he took one because of his higher than average contact and travel levels, as well as a lung injury he sustained during an attack by his neighbor in 2017.

Between taking the test last week and getting the positive result over the weekend, Paul mostly went about life as usual, avoiding a self-quarantine and even using the Senate gym.

That drew the ire of his Senate colleagues.

Paul hit back at criticism and accusations of him being "absolutely irresponsible" by detailing the chronology of his week after the test and saying that things would be worse if he hadn't gotten tested at all.

"For those who want to criticize me for lack of quarantine, realize that if the rules on testing had been followed to a tee, I would never have been tested and would still be walking around the halls of the Capitol," Paul said in his statement. "The current guidelines would not have called for me to get tested nor quarantined. It was my extra precaution, out of concern for my damaged lung, that led me to get tested."

The senator added that the guidelines have put him and other Americans in a "Catch-22 situation."

"I didn't fit the criteria for testing or quarantine," Paul said. "I had no symptoms and no specific encounter with a COVID-19 positive person. I had, however, traveled extensively in the US and was required to continue doing so to vote in the Senate. That, together with the fact that I have a compromised lung, led me to seek testing. Despite my positive test result, I remain asymptomatic for COVID-19."

Paul ended with a plea for more compassion amid the outbreak, coupled with a call for more testing.

"Perhaps it is too much to ask that we simply have compassion for our fellow Americans who are sick or fearful of becoming so," he said. "The broader the testing and the less finger-pointing we have, the better."