Melania Trump Slammed For Breaking Children's Hospital Rules By Taking Her Mask Off

First lady Melania Trump continued her tradition of visiting the Children’s National Hospital Tuesday and read a holiday book to the children who were admitted there for treatment.

However, Trump’s visit was soon met with criticism after photos went viral on social media showing that she broke the “mask policy” at the hospital when she removed her mask to read a book to the kids.

Netizens weren’t pleased with Trump’s actions and called her out for breaking the rule, which states that “everyone should wear a mask at all times while in any Children’s National Facility to prevent the spread of COVID-19.”

One Twitter user pointed out that it seems the rules were different for famous personalities and the common public because if a non-celebrity was not wearing a mask, the hospital staff would have escorted that person out of the facility for breaking the rules.

“She should have been asked to put it on or leave. Just like the rest of us,” the user wrote.

“Her lack of empathy isn’t surprising, but I am appalled that no one stepped in. We can’t enable this behavior,” another commented.

One of the users criticized the hospital for not stepping in and telling the first lady to follow the guidelines.

“So agree. I am horrified that a children’s hospital didn’t step up. Wear a damned mask!! At all times, especially in a hospital,” the Twitter user wrote.

“Shows no respect for rules, and especially for the health of the children,” another said.

“Once again, completely out of touch with America, and this time children? She may have antibodies, but everyone else in the world seeing this doesn’t know that even the children,” another added.

The controversy spread like wildfire on social media and the White House had to come out with a statement to do some damage control. The White House shared some specific details about the first lady’s visit and noted she was “12 feet away from others in the four-story atrium.”

“The visit followed the hospital's mask protocols for public speakers, based on the District of Columbia health guidance, that wearing a mask is not required when a person is giving a speech for broadcast or an audience, provided no one is within six feet of the speaker,” CNN quoted the White House as saying.

Meanwhile, Diana Troese, spokeswoman for Children’s National Hospital, admitted that Trump did remove her mask while reading but insisted that she did not come into close contact with others.

“In the case of today's visit which was broadcast to our 325 patients, while the First Lady did remove her mask while she read a story, she was more than 12 feet away from others in our large atrium. For the remainder of her visit, she wore a mask,” Troese said in a statement.

The controversy comes almost two months after the first lady was diagnosed with COVID-19. She and President Donald Trump tested positive for the life-threatening illness in early October.