On Wednesday, President Joe Biden underwent his annual physical exam — absent a cognitive test.
Dr. Kevin O’Connor, Biden’s physician, released a summary of the physical on Tuesday. O’Connor found “no new concerns.”
The doctor’s office claimed to have performed an “extremely detailed neurologic exam” finding no signs of stroke, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s or other similar conditions.
However, Biden skipped the further testing that’s common among certain seniors, prompting some defensive remarks from White House press secretary Jean-Pierre.
Lately, the public has been scrutinizing Biden’s mental acuity. Any jury would see Biden as “a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory,” the special counsel said in a report earlier this month.
The special counsel’s report on the investigation into Biden’s handling of classified documents repeatedly derided Biden’s memory, calling it “hazy,” “fuzzy,” “faulty,” “poor” and having “significant limitations.”
Many Americans, including Democrats, have expressed reservations about Biden seeking a second term during this fall’s election. Only 37% of Democrats say Biden should pursue reelection, down from 52% before the 2022 midterm elections, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre defended Biden’s decision to skip further testing, failing to see a need for it.
“The President doesn’t need a cognitive test,” Jean-Pierre said at a press conference Tuesday afternoon. “That is not my assessment. That is the assessment of the President’s doctor. That is also the assessment of the neurologist who has also made that assessment as well.”
What’s more, Jean-Pierre said that a cognitive test might produce a misleading result.
“I think folks need to understand that the President passes, again, a cognitive test every day. If you look at what a clinical cognitive test is actually, what it actually does, it is a 15-minute appointment that is — that is administered by someone that, most of the time, people don’t actually know,” Jean-Pierre said.
“The President has a team of doctors that is with him 24/7. And he is able to do the work every day that is rigorous — that is more rigorous than it would be for any 15-minute clinical — clinical appointment.”
According to the physical, Biden still suffers from the same underlying conditions: obstructive sleep apnea, arthritis in the spine, and neuropathy in his foot.
Since his last physical, Biden has received a root canal, had a skin lesion removed, and begun sleeping with a CPAP machine to treat sleep apnea.
O’Connor said that Biden was adjusting well to these interventions.
“President Biden is a healthy, active, robust, 81-year-old male who remains fit to successfully execute the duties of the presidency,” O’Connor said in a six-page memo on the president’s health, following the 2.5-hour exam at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
O’Connor’s report acknowledged Biden’s stiff walking but found no changes since last year. The doctor also reported hearing about “some increased left hip discomfort.”
The Horn editorial team and the Associated Press contributed to this article.