Former President Biden’s White House doctor, Kevin O’Connor, declined to answer questions during a deposition with the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Wednesday, according to a statement from his legal counsel, citing physician-patient privilege and constitutional rights against self-incrimination.
“Earlier today, Dr. Kevin O’Connor asserted the physician-patient privilege, as well as his right under the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, in declining to answer questions from the staff of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform regarding his service as Physician to the President during the Biden Administration,” the statement from O’Connor’s legal counsel said.
“On the advice of his legal counsel, Dr. O’Connor refused to answer questions that invaded the well-established legal privilege that protects confidential matters between physicians and their patients. His assertion of his right under the Fifth Amendment to decline to answer questions, also on the advice of his lawyers, was made necessary by the unique circumstances of this deposition,” the statement said.
O’Connor appeared for the deposition after House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) last month subpoenaed the doctor to compel his interview as part of the panel’s investigation into Biden’s mental acuity while in office and whether the former president was aware of documents signed with his “autopen” signature.
“The president is the most powerful person in the world. The American people have a right to know the health condition of the president, both physical and mental,” Comer said heading into the interview.
“I don’t believe that he can hide behind doctor-patient confidentiality because this is the president of the United States, and people expect the White House physician to be truthful and transparent about the president of the United States’ health,” Comer added.
The doctor’s lawyers over the weekend had requested postponement of the interview, raising concerns that O’Connor would not be able to protect doctor-patient privilege during the testimony, and asserting the committee had declined to rule out any limitations to the scope of the deposition.
The statement from O’Connor’s legal counsel referenced President Trump relying on his Fifth Amendment rights when refusing to testify in a deposition before the New York State Attorney General in 2022, saying: “Anyone in my position not taking the Fifth Amendment would be a fool — an absolute fool.”
NewsNation contributed reporting.
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