There it is, big as life at the NBC News website: a report dated Apr. 23 confirming that former Vice President Joe Biden’s “physician states that the 77-year-old is in good health and nowhere near slowing down.” From the article:
Dr. Kevin O’Connor of The George Washington University released a three-page medical summary of Biden’s health on Tuesday at the request of his patient, in which he described Biden as a “healthy, vigorous, 77-year-old male, who is fit to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency to include those as Chief Executive, Head of State and Commander in Chief.”
There is no new notable change in Biden’s medical history based on previous medical records released during his time as vice president. Biden survived two brain aneurysms in the late 1980s — one did not rupture. And while the condition was later complicated by subsequent deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, O’Connor states there are currently no serious threats to Biden’s health and medical conditions from his past are currently under control.
Biden is taking blood thinners and medication for acid reflux, cholesterol and seasonal allergies. Dr. John Torres, an NBC News medical correspondent, notes that acid reflux can occasionally cause a hoarse voice, which has become noticeable at times on the campaign trail.
What about Biden’s mental health status? That’s in there, too:
Critics of the former vice president’s age often suggest the septuagenarian is mentally and physically too old to be president, however, O’Connor makes no mention of any mental deficiencies, stating that Biden’s last physical showed his that his “cranial nerves and vestibular function are normal.”
The fact that O’Connor “makes no mention of any mental deficiencies” doesn’t mean there aren’t any. It’s entirely possible O’Connor lacks the expertise required to test mental alertness. MDs other than psychiatrists rarely have the knowledge base and skill set needed to do that kind of testing.
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But this all becomes academic when you look more closely at the second dateline, which indicates that the article was written “129d ago.” A glimpse of that three-page medical summary linked above confirms it. The summary is dated “15 December 2019.”
This is the results of last year’s physical. Speaking of which, when that document was made public last December, Barack Obama’s own once-longtime doctor opined that the records “are concerning and incomplete.”
Via the Washington Examiner:
“He’s not a healthy guy,” Dr. David Scheiner, who was Obama’s personal physician for 22 years before he became president, concluded after reading the records. “He’s not in bad shape for his age, but I wouldn’t say he’s in outstanding health. Could I guarantee he won’t have issues for the next four years? He has a lot of issues that are just sort of sitting there.”
A three-page letter from Biden’s physician concluded the former vice president is a “healthy, vigorous, 77-year-old” that is fit to be president. But the letter also revealed Biden receives treatment for an irregular heartbeat and high cholesterol and that he deals with acid reflux and seasonal allergies. It noted his already known history of aneurysms and that he took blood thinners.
The details from the letter made Scheiner, 81, concerned about Biden’s potential for strokes, and he said he would want to see results from an MRI or CT scan. Because Biden also used to have sleep apnea before getting surgery on his sinus and nasal passages, Scheiner said he would also like to review the results of a sleep study.
The report doesn’t mention an MRI despite the fact that Biden had two brain aneurysms in 1988, the first of which almost killed him. …
Stunts like this from the media highlight the fact that even the most seemingly reliable mainstream sources are not above stacking the deck when it comes to shilling for the candidate they prefer.
