Millions of Americans know him as a heart surgeon-turned-TV doctor, but Dr. Mehmet Oz is now a Trump administration official leading the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
In an interview with Spectrum News on Wednesday, Oz insisted President Donald Trump is healthier than ever.
“I kid him all the time that he causes blood pressure problems in other people, but it doesn’t seem to affect him. He’s remarkably fit,” Oz said. “And I do think he has a genetic blessing that he can go through life not having some of the chronic illnesses that afflict so many Americans.”
The president turns 80 on June 14 and just completed his third visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center since returning to office last year.
According to the White House, Trump has had five publicly announced medical appointments in 18 months — two dentist appointments in Florida and three visits to Walter Reed, the most recent on May 26.
In a podcast interview recorded Tuesday, Trump said: “I do physicals because I just want — I think I have an obligation to do it. But I just came out with very, very good results.”
After that physical, the White House physician released a memorandum that said: “President Trump remains in excellent health, demonstrating strong cardiac, pulmonary, neurological, and overall physical function” and that “he is fully fit to carry out all duties of the Commander-in-Chief and Head of State.”
Throughout his second term, Trump has repeatedly been photographed with bruising on his hands, and he appears to occasionally doze off in on-camera meetings. He often posts conspiracies and rants on social media at odd hours.
When Oz ran for U.S. Senate in 2022, he raised questions about then-President Joe Biden’s age and ability to serve.
“I’m concerned,” Oz said of Biden to Fox News host Sean Hannity in April 2022. “How do you explain the forgetfulness, the outbursts, the handshakes into the air?”
In his interview with Spectrum News on Wednesday, Oz said he feels differently about his current boss when asked, “What do you say to Americans who had those concerns about Biden, as you pointed out, but also have those concerns about President Trump now?”
“Well, the symptoms you’re describing are very different from what the concerns were around President Biden,” Oz claimed. “But also, let me speak as someone who’s with the president all the time. I’ve never met someone 79 years of age who had that much energy. And the sharp wit and the ability for him to discern complex issues is stunning to me. I wish that part of the interaction with the president was more evident to the American people.”
Many Democrats remain stung by Biden’s initial decision to run for reelection in his 80s before dropping out after his disastrous debate against Trump. Former first lady Jill Biden is now facing questions about it as she promotes her memoir.
Some Democrats argue the current administration is covering up the president’s true medical condition.
“There’s something wrong with Donald Trump’s health or cognitive abilities,” Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., said in a congressional hearing Wednesday at which Secretary of State Marco Rubio was testifying. “There’s a reason he keeps going to the hospital and they keep giving him cognitive tests.”
Oz offered this advice to Americans concerned about Trump’s health: “I think they should look at what they’re seeing with their own eyes and judge if this was a man that seems like he’s frail in any capacity. I think the president loves getting the tests and acing them.”