CBS News White House correspondent Ed O'Keefe and White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre sparred at Monday's briefing over President Biden's health and recurring visits from a Parkinson's disease specialist. 

ED O'KEEFE, CBS NEWS: I still have a question which is, was this experts visits whereas multiple visits to the White House pertaining at all to the president's care?

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: Here's the thing I have, I've said he's -- he has had three -- he has had three -- three physicals in those three physicals, that's when he has seen a specialist, a neurologist, a neurological specialist. I have to be super mindful here and this is why and I'll -- and I'll explain this to you in a second.

There are thousands of military personnel who come onto this White House. Many of them get the care from the White House Medical Unit and so need to be super careful. There are, you know, the medical unit uh hosts a wide range of specialists from dermatologists to neurologist. And so I cannot speak to every person because there are actually -- there's actually a security reasons to protect their privacy.

We respect and protecting people's privacy, so do not want to share. I'm not going to share people's names from here. But the president, I can tell you has seen a neurologist three times as it's connected to the -- to a physical that he gets every year that we provide to him. Hold on. Hold on wait, wait a second.

Wait.

[Crosstalk]

QUESTION: The White House, many times or at least once in regards to the president specifically.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: Hold on a second. Wait. Hold on a second.

QUESTION: You should be able to answer by this point.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: Wait, no, no, no, no, no, no. No, wait a minute come. Ed, please, a little respect here please. So every year around the president's physical examination, he sees a neurologist. That's three times, right. So I am telling you that he has seen a neurologist three times while he has been in this presidency.
That's what I'm saying. I am telling you that he has seen them three times. That is what I'm sharing with you, right? So every time he has a physical, he has had to see a neurologist. So that is answering that question. No, it is. It is. You're asking --

[Crosstalk]

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: But I just -- I also said to you and I also said to you for security reasons, we cannot share names.

We cannot share names. We have to -- we have to --

QUESTION: Others he would have met with, we cannot share names in regards to if someone came here with regards to the president.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: We can not share, we cannot share names of specialists broadly from a dermatologist to a neurologist. We cannot share names. There are security reasons. We have to -- we have to protect. I understand that. I -- I hear --

QUESTION: It's right there for anyone to see.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: Ed, I hear you. I cannot from here confirm any of that because we have to keep their privacy. I think they would appreciate that too we have to give them --

QUESTION: [Inaudible] the doctor?

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: We have to keep their privacy.

QUESTION: It's public information. It's listed.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: I hear you. I -- I -- I -- guys. Guys, guys, guys.

[Crosstalk]

QUESTION: Until the White House answers the question.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: Hold on a second, there's no reason to get back and go back and forth and be in this aggressive way.

QUESTION: I'm feeling a little miffed around here about how information has been shared with the press corps by him.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: What do you missed about? What are you missed something?

QUESTION: What he just asked about.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: What do you -- and then every time I come back and I answer the question that you guys asked.

QUESTION: Incorrectly and have to come back and clean up --

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: I never answered the question incorrectly. That is not true. I was asked about a medical exam. I was asked about a physical. That was in the line of question that I answered and I said no, he did not have a medical exam and I still stand that by that. Matter of fact, the president still stands by that.

He had a verbal check in that is something that the president has a couple times a week, a couple times a week.


CBS's O'Keefe to Karine Jean-Pierre: "We're Miffed Around Here About How Information Has Been Shared With The Press Corps"

Loading...