Trump says he will not wear a face mask

US President Donald Trump has said he will not wear a face mask despite new medical guidance advising Americans to do so.

He said he could not see himself greeting "presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings, queens" in the Oval Office while wearing one.

He stressed that the guidance released was "voluntary".

"You do not have to do it," he said. "I don't think I'm going to be doing it."

BBC News reports the guidelines issued by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the government's public health advisory agency, came as the US reported at least 270,473 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with nearly 7,000 deaths.

Until now, US health authorities had said that only the sick, or those caring for patients of coronavirus, should wear masks, but newer studies suggest that covering up one's face is important to prevent inadvertent transmission.

[Source: BBC News]