NEUROLOGICAL EXPERTISE NEEDED

A neurologist with expertise in Parkinson’s disease and other movement problems paid a visit to the White House as part of President Biden’s yearly medical tests, according to the president’s doctor, raising concerns about the president’s mental and physical well-being.

 

The White House physician, Kevin O’Connor, stated in a letter dated Monday night that Dr. Kevin Cannard was selected for Biden’s yearly physical examinations “not because he is a movement disorder specialist, but because he is a highly trained and highly regarded neurologist here at Walter Reed and across the Military Health System, with a very wide expertise which makes him flexible to see a variety of patients and problems.”

 

The letter said that the president saw no neurologist outside of his yearly physicals. O’Connor said he was given clearance by Biden and Cannard to disclose the identify of the physician and the details of his visits. “To protect patient privacy for the thousands of patients of the White House Medical Unit and the physicians who treat them, normally we do not disclose the names of specialists we work with,” the letter continues.

 

Biden’s physical examination in February revealed no indications of neurological conditions such as multiple sclerosis, stroke, Parkinson’s disease, ascending lateral sclerosis, or cervical myelopathy, according to O’Connor.

For further information, see his letter dated February 28, in which he stated that “an extremely detailed neurologic exam was again reassuring in that there were no findings which would be consistent with any cerebellar or other central neurological disorder.”

 

This comes after White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre promised to protect Cannard’s privacy by refusing to identify him or provide information on his White House trips to reporters during a news briefing earlier on Monday. She did, however, note that Biden sees a neurologist as part of his yearly physical examination and that the results are available to the public.

 

O’Connor’s letter also emphasized that Biden’s annual physical examination results have always been made available to the public. As word spread that a Parkinson’s disease specialist had visited the White House, questions about Biden’s mental capacity grew. According to the New York Post, a Walter Reed Parkinson’s disease specialist paid the White House at least eight visits over the course of eight months, including one on January 17, to speak with O’Connor.

 

Cannard’s background as a neurology specialist was outlined in O’Connor’s letter, along with the fact that he has been the White House Medical Unit’s neurology consultant since 2012. It further claimed that Biden had seen Cannard for every one of his yearly physicals, including the most recent one in February.