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Why Whoopi Goldberg Says She’s Happily Practicing ‘Responsible Social Distancing’ from ‘The View’

Whoopi Goldberg is enjoying “The View” from the comforts of her home these days as the deadly virus continues to impact thousands across the nation.

The comedic actress took extra precautions this week, choosing to co-host the daytime talk show remotely from her New Jersey home on Wednesday, March 18. In a message to fans and her fellow “The View” hosts, Goldberg assured that all was well and that her doctor had given her the “all-clear.”

Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg co-hosted “The View” remotely from her New Jersey home the week of March 9 amid fears over the spread of the pandemic. (Photo: The View/video screenshot

Still, she admits she had reservations about returning to work due to conflicting messages from local leadership.

“I am great! This is what we call responsible social distancing,” Goldberg, 64, said, chuckling. “I am healthy. My doctor was very annoyed with me. He was like, ‘I just gave you the okay, why are you back?’ I said, ‘Because I need an okay okay.’ So he gave me the okay okay, but I just felt like, with all this inconsistency between the governor and the mayor, it wasn’t good for me.”

Goldberg, who nearly died after a serious bout with pneumonia last year, explained she’s choosing to be extra cautious until New York Mayor Bill de Blasio and state Gov. Andrew Cuomo come up with a solid plan in response to the fast-spreading virus.

“The mayor, who’s saying ‘we’re going to be, you know, in place for now, New York’s gonna get locked down,’ and then you have Gov. Cuomo saying ‘well that’s not gonna happen.’ And I just felt like if I was going to really try to figure out whether it was okay to come in — my brain said ‘you know what, until they can get themselves together, the governor and the mayor, until they can figure out what they’re doing, I shouldn’t go in.’ So that’s why I’m still here.”

Many online users agreed with Goldberg’s line of thinking, but admittedly missed her presence at the round table.

“So happy you are taking precautions @WhoopiGoldberg,” one fan wrote.

“Doing the best thing for you, Whoopster!” someone else chimed in.” But I gotta say, after what I’m ‘viewing’ right now at that table (if you know what I mean!), you are desperately needed & missed as THE moderator!”

Another fan encouraged Goldberg to stay safe and said they thought it was a good idea she was working from home, adding: “Hope the rest of you at the table does the same.”

Fellow “The View” co-host Joy Behar, 77, is also choosing to self-isolate amid sharing that it was her daughter who urged her to stay home.

“I’m in a higher-risk group because of my age, but I’m perfectly healthy,” she explained. “The staff here, the exec producers, everybody, has really been doing their due diligence to clean the place up. But I’ve been thinking, maybe at my age — I know I look good, I look fantastic! I don’t look my age, I don’t. And so you really can’t tell how old I am by looking at me, but I am up there. The number, it makes me dizzy!”

Watch more in the clip below.

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