Mike Pence breaks Mayo Clinic rules and goes on tour without mask. Twitter noticed
Vice President Mike Pence visited the Mayo Clinic on Tuesday and didn’t follow the facility’s policy of wearing a face mask by forgoing one during the tour, media outlets reported.
Footage of Pence not wearing a mask during the tour appeared on social media. The vice president was there to learn about research and treatment for the coronavirus, The Hill reported. The clinic is located in Rochester, Minnesota.
The facility’s web page says: “Mayo Clinic is requiring all patients, visitors and staff to wear a face covering or mask to slow the spread of COVID-19.”
Mayo Clinic confirmed to Politico and CBS reporters that Pence was notified of the facility’s mask policy before his visit, but it’s unclear if he was directly asked to wear a mask or made aware of the guidance.
The clinic also tweeted that Pence was told about the policy before he toured but it was deleted a half hour after it was posted, according to CNBC.
“As Vice President of the United States, I’m tested for the coronavirus on a regular basis, and everyone who is around me is tested for the coronavirus,” Pence told reporters traveling with him. “And since I don’t have the coronavirus, I thought it’d be a good opportunity for me to be here, to be able to speak to these researchers, these incredible healthcare personnel and look them in the eye and say thank you.”
The incident caught the attention of U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, a Democrat from Hawaii, who wrote on Twitter that “when you don’t wear a mask, especially inside the Mayo Clinic, you are not being brave.”
He continued: “You are showing that you think the rules don’t apply to you. And you are setting a dangerous example by ignoring experts.”
Others on Twitter reacted to Pence after the video circulated on the platform.
“That’s not anywhere near good enough from the Mayo Clinic,” Andy Tharp wrote on Twitter. “They can’t let him put everybody there at risk.”
“Why did Mayo let him in without one then? Shame on him, and shame on them,” Twitter user Carly Norman wrote.
“I don’t care what office he holds, as irresponsible as not wearing a mask is, the clinic should not have let him in without it,” Barbara Kowalski wrote on Twitter.
“The Mayo Clinic was derelict in their responsibility to their staff and patients. They could and should have provide the VP a mask regardless of having advised him and his staff of their policy. This is where the double standard is harmful to all because no good example was set,” DFincher wrote.
Earlier in April, President Donald Trump said he didn’t envision himself wearing a mask, despite recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“I’m feeling good. I just don’t want to be doing, somehow sitting in the Oval Office behind that beautiful Resolute Desk, the great Resolute Desk, I think wearing a face mask as I greet presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings, queens, I don’t know, somehow, I don’t see it for myself. I just don’t. Maybe I’ll change my mind,” Trump said, according to TIME Magazine.
This story was originally published April 28, 2020 at 3:54 PM with the headline "Mike Pence breaks Mayo Clinic rules and goes on tour without mask. Twitter noticed."