No face mask for Vice President Mike Pence as he tours Mayo's COVID-19 testing labs in Rochester

Apr 29, 20200

Jim Mone – Associated Press count

Vice President Mike Pence, center, visits Dennis Nelson, a patient who survived the coronavirus and was going to give blood, during a tour of the Mayo Clinic Tuesday, April 28, 2020, in Rochester, Minn., as he toured the facilities supporting COVID-19 research and treatment.

Vice President Mike Pence returned to Minnesota on Tuesday to highlight Mayo Clinic's coronavirus research and testing efforts, calling them a "whole-of-Minnesota approach."

But even as he praised Mayo's efforts to combat COVID-19, Pence ignored the clinic's request that all visitors don face masks to prevent transmission, including Gov. Tim Walz and others on the tour. In the face of growing commentary on television and social media as the tour got underway, Mayo officials responded with a tweet:

https://www.startribune.com/vice-president-mike-pence-to-highlight-mayo-research-in-rochester-today/570006292/