President Joe Biden's long-awaited annual physical was conducted and released on Thursday, stating that he's a "healthy, vigorous, 80-year-old male."
Biden conducted the physical some 15 months after his last one, which was done in November 2021, at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in suburban Maryland.
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"The president remains fit for duty, and fully executes allof his responsibilities without any exemptions or accommodations," reads a memo penned by Dr. Kevin O'Connor.
O'Connor has served as Biden's primary care physician for 13 years dating back to his tenure as vice president, and similarly declared Biden "fit for duty" following his last physical.
Reporters had questioned White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre for months about when the physical would take place, and some expressed skepticism about its veracity in recent days.
Ex-President Barack Obama’s longtime former doctor warned in an exclusive interview with the Washington Examiner that Biden's delayed physical evaluation is likely to pitch the president’s health in the rosiest terms as he barrels toward an expected reelection announcement.
Dr. David Scheiner, who was Obama’s personal physician for more than two decades before he became president, said that while Biden has performed above expectations since entering office, the president’s age remains a major health concern. At 80, Biden is the oldest person to ever serve as president.
The president is widely believed to be setting the stage for a re-election bid, asking voters to keep him in office until age 86.
“You’re not going to learn anything. They sugarcoat these things,” Scheiner told the Washington Examiner, explaining that the president’s expected reelection campaign adds weight to the calls for transparency over the president’s health.
The White House had attributed the three-month delay in administering the physical to Biden’s travel schedule. However, the president told reporters over Thanksgiving that part of the exam was completed last year.
Republicans have raised the issue of the president's fitness repeatedly, and loop the delayed physical in with wider transparency concerns.
For instance, Biden’s public missteps during the first two years of his presidency are "certainly" cause for concern, according to Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN), a former family medicine practitioner before he was elected to Congress in 2010.
"I think it would be important to see a very thorough and comprehensive cognitive function study that is released with transparency to the general public," DesJarlais previously told the Washington Examiner. "The American people want to know that their commander in chief is fully capable of performing at the highest level to protect the safety and security of our nation.”
Biden is far from the first president to attract scrutiny over his health.
Former President Donald Trump was panned for allegedly dictating a statement disseminated by his 2016 campaign about his 2015 physical examination.
"If elected, Mr. Trump, I can state unequivocally, will be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency," Dr. Harold Bornstein, a gastroenterologist, wrote at the time.
O'Connor's report from Nov. 19, 2021detailed Biden's irregular heartbeat, high cholesterol, acid reflux, seasonal allergies, spinal arthritis, and a hot-cold sensation in both of his feet. For those issues, the president was prescribed medicines for high blood pressure and allergies.
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Those same questions will likely continue to dog Biden as he extends his run as the nation's oldest president.