A flurry of speculation has surrounded the health of Vice President Mike Pence after he appeared to have pink eye at Wednesday’s debate with Sen. Kamala Harris. A senior Trump administration official told Politico that Pence likely suffered from a broken blood vessel, rather than a pink eye infection.
Pence’s eye problem, as well as a fly that settled on his head, drew attention on social media.
Dr. Daniel Volland, an optometrist based in Seattle, also diagnosed Pence with a broken blood vessel.
“Eye doctor, here! Temporal Subconjunctival Hemorrhage OS is my diagnosis; it’s a broken blood vessel, not infectious,” Volland tweeted.
Although some debate viewers thought Pence’s eye could be a symptom of COVID-19, the vice president tested negative for the virus prior to the event. Pink eye is a rare symptom of a COVID-19 infection.
“The number of COVID-19 patients that have been reported to have eye symptoms