Kathrine Frich
Behind closed doors, privacy rules are strict.
Getting a quick appointment with a family doctor can take weeks for most ordinary people.
At the very top of American politics, however, medical care runs on a stopwatch. Time is measured in seconds.
Three minutes away
According to the Wall Street Journal, 80-year-old US President Donald Trump is never more than three minutes away from his primary doctor, Dr. Sean Barbabella, or another physician on the team.
As The Daily Beast reported, the 56-year-old Navy captain served in Afghanistan before taking over the president’s care and writing his upbeat annual checkups.
Behind closed doors, privacy rules are strict. One insider familiar with the doctor’s work told the Wall Street Journal that White House staffers usually clear out of the room whenever the two men talk, describing Barbabella’s style as “low key and direct.”
Having a medic hovering nearby is actually standard practice for commanders in chief. According to The Daily Beast, Dr. Jeffrey Kuhlman, who cared for Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama, previously noted that a doctor and a critical care nurse always stayed within two minutes of the president.
Glowing medical reports
When Barbabella shares updates with the public, his tone turns remarkably enthusiastic. In his May 2026 medical summary, reported by The Daily Beast, the physician noted that a special AI-assisted heart test put Trump’s heart age at roughly 14 years younger than his actual age.
Even though the doctor advised cutting back on aspirin, moving more, and improving his diet to lose weight, the final verdict was glowing. Barbabella wrote: “President Trump remains in excellent health, demonstrating strong cardiac, pulmonary, neurological, and overall physical function.”
The doctor also praised how the president handles his heavy daily workload. “Cognitive and physical performance are excellent. He is fully fit to carry out all duties of the Commander-in-Chief and Head of State,” Barbabella concluded in the report.
Ignoring the doctor
Over the years, the president has often received breathless praise from his physicians.
Back in 2015, longtime doctor Harold Bornstein famously claimed Trump would be the healthiest person ever elected, though Bornstein later told CNN in 2018 before his 2021 death: “He dictated that whole letter. I didn’t write that letter, I just made it up as I went along.”
Whether the 80-year-old actually listens to his current medical team is another story entirely. At an Ohio rally last week, The Daily Beast noted that Trump bragged to the crowd about brushing off medical advice regarding what he called a “monster” daily dose of aspirin.
“I take an aspirin a day. I don’t know if it works, but psychologically I need it,” Trump told the crowd, before recalling how he shut down his doctors’ warnings. “They said, ‘Sir, you don’t need that!’ I said, ‘Do me a favor, I’ve been doing okay for 35 years. Leave me alone.’”
