Trump is getting a physical this Friday, but he may not reveal anything

This Friday, President Donald Trump will have his yearly medical checkup at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. This could be an important moment, giving people a chance to see how healthy the oldest U.S. president in history really is. However, since Trump hasn’t always been open about his health in the past, it’s unclear how much information will actually be shared with the public.

During his time as president, Trump has rarely been as transparent about his health as past presidents have been. This is interesting because he has often questioned President Biden’s physical and mental health. While presidents have a right to keep some medical details private, the public is still interested in knowing how healthy their leader is. Per AP News, this conflict between privacy and public interest has been a big issue throughout Trump’s presidency.

One example of this was when Trump got COVID-19 in 2020, as reported by Time. At first, his doctor made it sound like he was doing fine, but later, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows admitted that some of Trump’s health signs had been “very concerning.” After he recovered, reports suggested he had been much sicker than originally claimed.

Trump’s annual physical is this Friday, despite years hesitance over releasing medical details

Instead of clearing things up, Trump did a pre-recorded interview with a Fox News commentator, which only made people more suspicious about how honest he was being.

The assassination attempt in July 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania, also raised questions. After the shooting, a note from Trump’s former White House doctor, Representative Ronny Jackson, said he had been shot in the right ear, but full medical records were never made public. Trump later said he was willing to release them but never did.

This habit of not sharing much isn’t just about major events like COVID or the shooting. In November 2023, a letter released on President Biden’s birthday said Trump was in “excellent” physical and mental shape—but it didn’t include basic details like his weight, blood pressure, or cholesterol levels. Even routine doctor visits have been unusual; in 2019, a trip to Walter Reed wasn’t even listed on his public schedule at first.

The upcoming checkup will probably follow the same pattern. A positive report is expected, but it likely won’t include many specifics. This matches past reports that said Trump was healthy but left out the detailed medical information that other presidents have shared.

The checkup also makes people wonder what tests will be done. In 2018, Representative Jackson said Trump had asked for a Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), which checks for memory and thinking problems. It’s unknown if he’ll take that test again this time, and that uncertainty will affect how people view the White House’s honesty about his health.

Age is another factor—at 78, Trump is the oldest president ever.