White House Denies News President Biden Undergoes Parkinson's Disease Treatment

President Joe Biden and White House spokesman Karine Jean-Pierre. (Wikimedia Commons/The White House)

JAKARTA - The White House confirmed that United States President Joe Biden was not undergoing treatment for parkinson disease, dismissed a New York Times report regarding a visit record showing a specialist in the disease visiting the White House at least eight times from August to March.

The president's concern that he may suffer from an undisclosed illness has increased since Biden stumbled, looking weak and sometimes losing his mind, in his debate on June 27 against Republican candidate Donald Trump.

"Is the president being treated for Parkinson's disease? No. Is he taking medication for Parkinson's disease? No," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told a briefing.

President Biden fought criticism from several of his party's colleagues in Democrats that he had no mental sharpness to run against Trump in the presidential election on November 5.

A Reuters review of White House visit records shows Dr. Kevin Cannard, a neurologist and movement disorders specialist from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, visited the White House eight times from August to March.

Cannard has co-authored research on the treatment of early-stage Parkinson's disease at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

The note shows Cannard met with White House doctor Dr. Kevin O'Connor at the White House in mid-January. Cannard's visit to the White House was first reported by The New York Post on July 6.

A former White House official, who worked for Biden when he was vice president under President Barack Obama and as president, was treated by the same doctor for migraines in 2016, the former official told Reuters. The doctor comes to the White House once a month as part of his rotation, the person said.

Jean-Pierre declined to confirm or elaborate further on Cannard's visit. At a press conference, he was often challenged by reporters and said he wanted to respect the privacy of all parties involved for security reasons.

He said President Biden had met neurologists three times regarding his annual physical examination. He did not explain Cannard's presence at the White House, but suspected it might be related to the maintenance of several military personnel working at the White House complex.

"There are thousands of military personnel coming to the White House and they are under the care of a medical unit," he said.