The Biden administration doubled down on the 81-year-old president’s claim he is capable of four more years in the White House.
Topline
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Monday denied President Joe Biden is receiving Parkinson’s treatment, after reports that a Parkinson’s specialist visited the White House nearly a dozen times over the past two years, as the 81-year-old president faces increasing calls to end his campaign over concerns about his physical health and mental acuity.Key Facts
When asked in a White House press conference if Biden has been treated for Parkinson’s, Jean-Pierre cited Biden’s recent physical, which found Biden does not display any neurological disorders, including Parkinson’s, a stroke or multiple sclerosis.
Jean-Pierre said Biden has met with a neurologist three times during his presidency, saying those visits were “connected” to the president’s annual physical, though she did not provide a name of the neurologist; Biden’s February physical showed “no new concerns,” and found Biden was “fit for duty.”
Jean-Pierre fielded the questions following a flurry of reports citing White House visitor logs showing visits by Kevin Cannard, a neurologist specializing in Parkinson’s and a “neurology consultant” to the White House Medical Unit, according to his own biography.
Cannard visited the White House 10 times between November 2022 and March 28, 2024, according to White House visitor records, and made 10 trips to the White House in 2012, four in 2013, and one 2015 when Biden was vice president.
