US President Joe Biden, 80, will undergo a medical on Thursday (16), ahead of an expected announcement that he will seek re-election to a second four-year term as president.
Biden’s visit to doctors at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center near Bethesda, Maryland, will be his second extensive examination since taking office in January 2021.
His last medical exam and colonoscopy, in November 2021, showed the president to be a “healthy, vigorous 78-year-old male”, his doctors said. He had a polyp removed from his colon.
Biden, already the oldest US president in history, has spurned questions about his age and enjoyed a string of legislative successes in his first two years. However, voters are worried about the other four years.
About 75% of Americans, including more than half of Democrats and the vast majority of Republicans, say Biden is too old to work in government, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll taken Feb. 6-13.
Most Democratic respondents said the president remains in good mental shape, but about half said he can’t handle the physical weight of the presidency.
Biden would be 86 at the end of a possible second term, making him 13 years older than the average life expectancy for an American male, according to 2020 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). .
In his latest examination, White House physician Kevin O’Connor declared that Biden is fit for duty and capable of carrying out his responsibilities. O’Connor attributed Biden’s stiff gait to spinal arthritis and “peripheral neuropathy,” or some loss of feeling in his feet.
Biden’s doctors are expected to perform a neurological examination on Thursday, as is typical of people in his age group who are more vulnerable to falls, Borna Bonakdarpour, associate professor of neurology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, told Reuters .
They should also check Biden’s eyes and hearing and “anything else he might complain about,” Bonakdarpour said. Biden’s cognition appeared good during the recent State of the Union address, the doctor said.
Joe Biden told Judy Woodruff in an interview with PBS last week that any American concerned about his age should “watch me” perform the duties of the presidency.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
