Biden arrives at Walter Reed for physical exam

President Biden arrived at Walter Reed Medical Center on Thursday morning to undergo his annual physical.

Biden arrived for his physical around 9:15 a.m. The White House will publicly release a written summary of the president’s physical later in the day after it is completed, the press office said.

Biden did not have a physical during the 2022 calendar year, which the White House chalked up to “scheduling around what has been a busy and evolving travel schedule in recent weeks.”

His last physical was completed in November 2021, and his physician determined at that time that he was healthy and fit to execute the duties of the presidency.

Biden’s health will be closely watched as he inches closer to announcing his 2024 reelection bid. The president turned 80 last November, and he would be 82 at the start of a second term. Biden was already the oldest president at the time of his swearing in, and while Democrats have largely fallen in line in support of another Biden campaign, questions about his age and fitness for office will likely be central to attacks by his opponents. 

Asked last week during an interview with PBS Newshour about those in his own party who wonder if his age is an issue, Biden gave what has become his usual retort on the issue.

“Watch me,” Biden said. “It’s all I can say.”

“I would be completely, thoroughly honest with the American people if I thought there was any health problem, anything that would keep me from being able to do the job,” he added. “And so we’ll see. But, you know, I just, I think people have to just watch me.”