Minneapolis – United States Vice President Mike Pence decided not to wear a mask on Tuesday during a tour of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, in an apparent violation of the global standard set by the medical center.
A video shows that Pence did not have a mask when he encountered a Mayo Clinic employee who recovered from COVID-19 and is now donating plasma. Fourth, the rest of the people had face masks on. Pence also did not use it when she visited the Mayo lab where coronavirus tests will be done.
Pence was the only participant not to wear the mask during the round table to discuss research and testing programs at the clinic. Everyone else does, including the head of the Food and Drug Administration, Stephen Hahn, Mayo officers, Minneosta Governor Tim Walz, and Rep. Jim Hagerdorn.
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Mayo tweeted that he informed the vice president of the mask rules before his arrival. The tweet was later removed. May officials did not directly respond to a request to comment on why the tweet was removed, or who ordered to do so.
“Mayo shared the mask rules with the vice president’s office,” the health care system responded.
Pence justified his decision by ensuring that he is frequently tested for the virus.
“As the vice president of the United States, I am regularly tested for coronavirus, and everyone around me is tested,” Pence said, adding that he follows CDC guidelines, which indicate that masks are good to prevent. the spread of the virus by infected people.
“And since I don’t have coronaviruses, I think it’s a good opportunity to be here, to be able to talk to the researchers, look them in the eye and say thank you.”
Pence is not the only White House officer who has been reluctant to put on a mask. When the president Donald Trump announced the new federal guidelines that recommended Americans to wear masks in public, he immediately expressed that he had no intention of not following the recommendation, saying “I choose not to.”
Pence was also unmasked last week at the GE Healthcare facility, where they make respirators, in Madison, Wisconsin. Some wore masks and others did not. The White House stated at the time that Pence had tested negative for coronavirus and did not need to wear face masks under the guidelines designed by the eltask force.
