Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Trump Medical Mystery Solved, But Why Was A Colonoscopy Kept Secret?
Politico: The Inside Scope: How Ego Led Trump To Hide A Colonoscopy
It was one of the great mysteries of his time in office. Why, exactly, did President Donald Trump make an unscheduled trip to Walter Reed National Medical Center one sunny Saturday afternoon in November 2019? A wide range of conspiracy theories was birthed from that moment — It was a heart ailment! He had a stroke! An impeachment driven anxiety attack? — further fueled by the fact that a White House famous for leaks steadfastly refused to explain it. Indeed, aides themselves didn’t know. And those who did were incredibly tight-lipped about it. Until now. (McGraw, 10/7)
People: Donald Trump's 2019 Walter Reed Trip Was For Colonoscopy
At the time, the White House said Trump was at Walter Reed only for "a quick exam and labs" in order to get started on his annual physical, with Grisham herself dismissing what she called "conspiracy theories" about the hospital trip. A year later, however, New York Times reporter Michael Schmidt's book Donald Trump v. The United States reported that Trump's visit to Walter Reed came with serious implications: "In the hours leading up to Trump's trip to the hospital, word went out in the West Wing for the vice president to be on standby to take over the powers of the presidency temporarily if Trump had to undergo a procedure that would have required him to be anesthetized." As Grisham writes in her book now, Trump opted not to go under anesthesia for the procedure, because he did not want Pence to take over the country, if only briefly. (Chamlee, 10/7)
Business Insider: Trump Skipped Anesthesia For A Previously Unreported Procedure At Walter Reed To Avoid Giving Pence Temporary Power, According To New Book
President Donald Trump skipped anesthesia for a previously unreported 2019 colonoscopy at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center so he wouldn't have to temporarily relinquish his presidential powers, a new book says, according to The New York Times. Trump puzzled reporters with a mysterious, unscheduled November 2019 visit to Walter Reed and added to the confusion by saying the appointment was the first part of his routine annual physical, which is normally done in just one appointment. (Panetta and Lahut, 9/28)
Is Trump healthy enough to run again in 2024? —
The Hill: Omarosa Manigault Newman: Trump May Not 'Even Be Healthy Enough' To Run In 2024
Former White House aide Omarosa Manigault Newman in an interview that aired Sunday suggested former President Trump may not be in good enough physical condition to run for president again in 2024. "I think, going into 2024, I'm really more concerned that Donald Trump hasn't come forward and talked about his health," Manigault Newman said during an appearance on MSNBC."I don't know if he will even be healthy enough to run in 2024, and I think he needs to come clean to the American people about where he is on that before getting into a very stressful and strenuous race for the White House," added the former "Apprentice" contestant, who has known Trump for decades but fell out with the former president badly while he was in office. (Mastrangelo, 10/4)
Also —
The Hill: Artist Puts Coffin On Trump's Hollywood Star To Highlight Preventable COVID-19 Deaths
An artist has made a grim addition to former President Trump's Hollywood Walk of Fame star, installing a coffin that he says is in protest of those who oppose face masks and COVID-19 vaccines. The life-sized white coffin from Plastic Jesus, a Los Angeles-based street artist, could be seen Thursday on Trump's marker. "On the side it's got the 'USA Freedom Box,'" the artist said in an interview posted on Twitter. "It's really kind of a blow at the people saying vaccines and masks are impeding their freedoms," he said. "Once you're dead and you're in a coffin, you don't have any worries about losing freedoms." (Kurtz, 10/7)
The Washington Post: How Trump’s Health Department Fell In Love With Charter Jets
In April 2017, officials at the Department of Health and Human Services grappled with an urgent request: how to get Tom Price from D.C. to a conference at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Laguna Niguel, Calif., after bad weather delayed the secretary’s planned flight aboard Delta Air Lines. ... Officials quickly secured a $29,000 charter flight — which also had to be scuttled, as tornadoes plagued the D.C. region. But the day’s events left a scar on Price’s top aides, who vowed that the Trump Cabinet official would never again wait on a commercial airline’s schedule, and foreshadowed a five-month travel sprint in which the health department spent $456,000 in taxpayer money on Price’s charter flights across the United States. (Diamond and Leonnig, 10/6)
