President Joe Biden’s primary physician met with a Parkinson’s disease specialist at the White House, according to visitor logs obtained by the New York Post.
Dr. Kevin Cannard, a neurologist and Parkinson’s disease expert at Walter Reed Medical Center, met with Biden’s top doctor, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, and two others at the White House residence clinic on Jan. 17, the outlet reported. Cannard has worked at Walter Reed for close to 20 years and is cited as being a “neurology specialist supporting the White House Medical Unit,” according to his LinkedIn.
Parkinson’s disease is a neurological condition that causes a gradual loss of nerve cells in the brain, resulting in various symptoms such as tremors, slowness, and stiffness of the limbs. The disease can also manifest in decreased facial expressions, soft speech, and postural instability, according to the Parkinson’s Foundation.
The White House has spent the past week doing damage control following Biden’s shaky and halting debate performance, listing various excuses.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Friday told reporters that the president had a “verbal check-in” with his doctor about a cold he had during the debate, The Hill reported.
Earlier in the week when Jean-Pierre was asked if Biden had a seen his doctor about his cold, she said he hadn’t. The White House was forced to maneuver around its initial reports after Biden told a group of Democrat governors he had a checkup.
On Wednesday, Jean-Pierre said that Biden had not had any kind of medical exam and responded “no” when asked if the president had been examined by a doctor since his annual exam in February. At the time, Biden’s primary physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor said the president is “fit for duty.”
