US Vice President Mike Pence breaks the rules and visits a hospital without a mask

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The vice president of the United States, Mike Pence , violated the rules of the prestigious Mayo Clinic on Tuesday by refusing to wear a mask during a visit to one of its hospital centers in Minnesota.

Video footage released by the media who accessed the visit shows Pence as the only person without a mask surrounded by at least a dozen people among hospital workers and a minimum of three patients.

In a tweet that he later deleted, the Mayo Clinic official account claimed "to have informed the vice president of the rules on masks before his arrival."

On its website, the Mayo Clinic notifies "of the obligation to cover their faces or wear masks to stop the spread of COVID-19 to all patients, visitors and workers."

Pence, who coordinates the White House team against COVID-19, not only failed to comply with hospital rules, but also ignored government recommendations issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regarding the use of masks. in closed places.

The images of the vice president without a mask are generating controversy in the media and networks, as well as criticism from the opposition.

Asked by journalists at the end of his visit to the clinic about his decision not to wear a mask, Pence defended that he frequently undergoes tests for the coronavirus, with negative results to date.

"When the CDC published their recommendation on masks, they recognized that people who may have coronaviruses could prevent the possibility of passing it on to someone else by wearing masks. Since I don't have coronaviruses, it seemed like a good opportunity to be here," Pence explained.

The president of the United States, Donald Trump, announced earlier this month the recommendation of the use of masks for all citizens, although he stated that he had no intention of complying with it. Trump has not been out of the White House since March 28.

COVID-19 infections in the United States already exceed one million cases, while the deceased are close to 60,000, more than in any other country.

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