Trump says he’ll undergo routine ‘semi-annual’ exam during planned Walter Reed trip
By Adam Cancryn, CNN
(CNN) — President Donald Trump will travel to Walter Reed Medical Center on Friday, making an unusual return to the health facility for the second time this year.
The trip, which the White House initially described as a “yearly” checkup, comes just six months after Trump underwent a regular physical that his doctor referred to then as an “annual” examination.
Trump later clarified that his latest trip would be for a routine “semi-annual” exam, insisting he remains healthy and is simply trying to keep it that way.
“I think I’m in great shape, but I’ll let you know,” he said from the Oval Office on Thursday. “When I’m around, I like to check. Always be early, it’s a lesson for a lot of people.”
The visit nevertheless marks a departure from the traditional presidential cadence of undergoing a single comprehensive exam per year.
And it follows the White House’s disclosure over the summer that Trump had been diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency. The condition is common in older people and easily manageable, but had sparked speculation about his health after photos showed swelling in his legs.
Trump, who at 79 is one of the oldest presidents in US history, has also faced scrutiny over regular bruising on his right hand that he’s appeared at times to cover up with heavy makeup. The White House physician, Dr. Sean Barbabella, has attributed it to a combination of “frequent handshaking” and aspirin use, which can increase bruising.
“Certainly, as we all get older, we often need more than one visit with our doctor in a year because we have various chronic problems that are being managed,” said Dr. Megan Ranney, dean of the Yale School of Public Health and an emergency physician. “(Trump) gets a higher standard of care than most of the rest of us.”
Presidents have access to basic medical care at the White House. But for more extensive exams and procedures, they traditionally go to Walter Reed.
The White House offered no details about the checkup beyond its initial announcement, which said that Trump would also use the opportunity to meet and speak to troops on site. He’s expected to return to the White House afterward, ahead of an anticipated trip to the Middle East over the weekend to hail the first phase of a peace deal between Israel and Hamas.
“We’re planning on leaving sometime Sunday, and I look forward it,” Trump said. “Everybody’s celebrating.”
The president has frequently cited his medical evaluations as evidence of his vigor, boasting repeatedly about a cognitive test that he claims he aced. Trump’s fitness also played an outsized role on the campaign trail, where he often pointed to his exam results as a contrast to swirling questions about then-President Joe Biden’s health and mental acuity.
Yet like most American presidents, Trump has also been selective in the past about sharing the full state of his health, perhaps most notably seeking to conceal the seriousness of his Covid-19 symptoms after contracting the disease in October 2020 and needing to be hospitalized at Walter Reed for multiple days.
Trump’s post-annual exam memos during his first term also routinely featured over-the-top praise for his health, with then-presidential physician Dr. Ronny Jackson at one point highlighting his “good genes” and routinely portraying him as remarkably fit.
The White House called on Jackson again in recent months to bolster its dismissals of scrutiny around Trump’s hand bruise, issuing a statement from the now-Texas congressman that dubbed him “the healthiest president this nation has ever seen.”
By contrast, Barbabella’s report following Trump’s first physical in April offered a straightforward rundown of his condition — for the most part. After declaring him “fully fit” to execute his presidential duties, Barbabella concluded that “President Trump remains in excellent health.”
As evidence of that well-being, he cited Trump’s “frequent victories in golf events.”
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
