Biden physical set for Feb. 16 as White House misses January deadline
WASHINGTON — President Biden will get his annual physical on Feb. 16, the White House said Wednesday — after promising the checkup would be completed by the end of January.
When asked by reporters for an update Jan. 20 on when the exam would take place, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre answered: “He will have one before the — by the time the end of this month is out.”
An administration official said in a statement that the delay “was just a matter of scheduling around what has been a busy and evolving travel schedule in recent weeks.”
The findings will be “released publicly in the same manner as last year,” the official added, apparently meaning that presidential physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor will issue a report — but not answer journalist questions. O’Connor has never been allowed to brief reporters directly, including when Biden was treated for COVID-19 last year.
It’s unclear if the 80-year-old president, who regularly shares false or embellished memories, will submit to a cognitive exam.
Biden is preparing to launch a 2024 re-election campaign and would be 86 years old if he completes a full second term — heightening the stakes of the inspection at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Maryland.
Biden is the oldest-ever US president and his mental acuity is frequently a matter of debate — particularly after he asked “Where’s Jackie?” as he searched for the late Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.) in September, despite publicly mourning her death and even calling her family to offer his condolences in August.
The president’s most recent physical was in November 2021 and featured a colonoscopy using anesthesia that required Biden to hand over presidential powers to Vice President Kamala Harris for 85 minutes.
O’Connor released a six-page report after that exam giving Biden a relatively clean bill of health.
The doctor wrote that he investigated Biden’s “perceptibly stiffer” gait and his “increasing frequency and severity of ‘throat clearing’ and coughing during speaking engagements,” but found nothing of concern.
“A combination of significant spinal arthritis, post-fracture ‘limp and compensation’ and a mild sensory peripheral neuropathy of the feet are the explanation for the subtle gait changes which I was investigating,” O’Connor wrote.
A foot fracture that Biden said occurred after tugging his then-dog Major’s tail following a shower in late 2020 had “healed nicely,” according to that report.
Former President Donald Trump, 76, also is running again in 2024 despite reportedly expressing concern that he might be too old.
Unlike Biden, Trump allowed his then-physician Dr. Ronny Jackson to answer reporter questions for nearly one hour in 2018 — though Jackson, now a Texas Republican congressman, stunned reporters by claiming that Trump might live to be “200 years old” if he had a better diet.
