CDC worked on 'Make America Healthy Again' face mask initiative in March even as hospitals were desperate for more tests: report

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this past March reportedly agreed to help consult with Trump administration officials on the design of "Make America Healthy Again" face masks that would be given out to promote both public health and President Donald Trump's re-election campaign.

The New York Times reports that Trump administration official in March "asked the agency to provide feedback on possible logos -- including 'Make America Healthy Again' -- for cloth face masks they hoped to distribute to millions of Americans."

The initiative eventually fell through, but once source tells the Times that "CDC leaders agreed to the request."

The discussion about Trump-branded face masks came at a time when hospitals across the United States were desperate to have more COVID-19 testing kits and protective gear for their staff members who were struggling to handle a surge in hospitalizations at the start of a pandemic that would go on to kill more than 100,000 Americans in less than three months.

“They let us down,” Dr. Stephane Otmezguine, an anesthesiologist who treated COVID-19 patients in Florida, tells the Times.