Biden gets clean bill of health from doctors as Republicans focus on his age

President Joe Biden has been given a clean bill of health from his latest physical, reportedThe Washington Post on Thursday — a development that comes as he faces the prospect of being the first octogenarian to serve as and seek re-election as president, and as some Republican hopefuls take shots at age as a campaign issue.

"Kevin O’Connor — who has been Biden’s primary care doctor since 2009 — wrote that the most notable update from Biden’s last physical in November 2021 was his covid-19 infection over the summer, but said the president has not experienced any lingering symptoms that could be characterized as 'long covid,'" reported Toluse Olorunnipa and Yasmeen Abutaleb. "As part of the physical, Biden underwent routine skin cancer surveillance. O’Connor said one 'small lesion' on the president’s chest was excised on Thursday and sent for traditional biopsy and that the results are pending. O’Connor noted that Biden spent a 'good deal of time' in the sun when he was young and that he had several non-melanoma skin cancers removed before assuming the presidency."

All of this comes as some Republicans have tried to make the age of both Biden and former President Donald Trump a campaign issue, as they seek the presidency themselves.

One who has been particularly forceful is former U.N. Ambassador and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who stated, “America is not past our prime. It’s just that our politicians are past theirs,” and called for mandatory competency tests for any politician older than 75.

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"Biden has several minor medical conditions he is treated for: non-valvular atrial fibrillation, a common type of irregular heartbeat; hyperlipidemia, or high cholesterol; gastroesophageal reflux; seasonal allergies; spinal arthritis; and mild sensory peripheral neuropathy of the feet," noted the report. "O’Connor said all the conditions were stable, and that the president takes three common prescription medications and two common over-the-counter medications to treat them."

Trump himself is 76 years old and has a number of well-documented unhealthy habits; if he receives the nomination again, it would set up a race where, no matter who ran, the winner would depart their four-year term as the oldest president in U.S. history.