Washington: US President Donald Trump wore a mask first time during a visit to a military hospital on Saturday. As per the recommendations of health officials as a precaution against spreading of becoming infected by the Covid-19 pandemic, the US president has been seen in precaution with a mask.

Trump flew by helicopter to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in suburban Washington to meet wounded service members and health care providers caring for Covid-19 patients. Trump told reporters after he left the White House, “when you’re in a hospital, especially, I think it’s a great thing to wear a mask.” Trump was wearing a mask in Walter Reed’s hallway as he began his visit.

He was not wearing one when he stepped off the helicopter at the facility. The president was a latecomer to wearing a mask during the pandemic, which has raged across the U.S. since March and infected more than 3.2 million and killed at least 134,000.

Most prominent Republicans, including Vice President Mike Pence, endorsed wearing masks as the Covid-19 gained ground this summer. Republican governors have been moving toward requiring or encouraging the use of masks as the pandemic has grown more serious in some states in the South and West. Trump, however, has declined to wear a mask at news conferences, Covid-19 task force updates, rallies and other public events.

Few masks were seen at recent Trump campaign events in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Phoenix and South Dakota’s Mount Rushmore. The only time Trump has been known to wear a mask was during a private part of a tour of a Ford plant in Michigan. On its website, Walter Reed carries this recommendation: “Whenever you’re out in public, like at your local grocery store or pharmacy, where it’s difficult to maintain 6 feet of social distance, you should wear a cloth face covering.”

The facility also notes that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends wearing cloth face coverings to slow the spread of the Covid-19.