In a letter released Monday night by the president’s physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, he confirmed that Dr. Kevin Cannard, the Parkinson’s specialist who visited the White House eight times in an eight-month period“was the neurological specialist who examined President Biden at each of his annual physicals.”
Canard’s visits to the White House do not represent examinations of the president, according to O’Connor’s letter. Cannard is involved in a number of caregiving arrangements for people other than the president at the White House, O’Connor said in his note.
“Before the pandemic and after its end, [Cannard] held regular neurology clinics at the White House Medical Clinic in support of the thousands of active duty members assigned to support White House operations,” his letter says. “Many military personnel face neurological problems related to their service, and Dr. Canard regularly visits WHMU as part of this General Neurology Practice.”
About the subject Biden’s physiqueO’Connor noted that “President Biden has not seen a neurologist outside of his annual physical.”
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O’Connor also emphasized that Biden’s latest physical exam found no signs of Parkinson’s, which he detailed in a Feb. 28 letter.
Although White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to confirm these details on Monday, citing privacy concerns, O’Connor said she “obtained permission from the President and Dr. Cannard to confirm the details I’m sharing.”
O’Connor offered in his letter a full endorsement of Dr. Cannard and his work as a White House Neurology Consultant since 2012.
“Dr. Cannard was chosen for this responsibility not because he is an expert in movement disorders, but because he is a highly trained and respected neurologist here at Walter Red and throughout the Military Health System, with a breadth of experience that makes him flexible to see a variety of patients and problems,” he wrote.
As ABC News reported on Monday, a Parkinson’s disease expert visited the White House eight times over an eight-month period between July and March of this year, including a visit to the president’s personal physician, according to medical records. visitors to the White House.
Asked repeatedly at Monday’s news conference about Cannard, Jean-Pierre declined to say whether the neurologist ever treated the president or consulted about his care, citing privacy concerns, but said Biden was not being treated for the Parkinson’s disease.
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“You’re refusing to say whether he was here to evaluate the president or whether he was consulting on the president’s health. So what was that meeting about?” ABC News asked.
Jean-Pierre said he would not go into detail about the meeting “because we will not confirm or talk about the names you are giving me. It is a security issue.”
As part of his annual physical exam, the president was evaluated by a neurologist who found no signs of Parkinson’s, according to a summary released by O’Connor in February.
“An extremely detailed neurological examination was once again reassuring as there were no findings consistent with any cerebellar or other central neurological disorder such as stroke, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s or lateral ascending sclerosis, nor are there any signs of cervical myelopathy,” states its report.
Overall, the February report stated that Biden, 81, remains “fit for duty and fully executes all of his responsibilities without any exemptions or accommodations.”
White House doctor offers explanation for visits from Parkinson’s specialists originally appeared in abcnews.go.com
