It appears former President Joe Biden’s doctor desperately does not want to testify before Congress about his former boss’ mental deterioration.
Dr. Kevin O’Connor, who served as Biden’s physician while he was in office, has refused to testify in closed-door proceedings as House Republicans investigate how the former president’s cognitive decline affected his presidency, according to Politico.
O’Connor asserted doctor-patient privilege and his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, according to a statement from his attorneys. He had repeatedly argued his duties as a doctor complicated his testimony and prevented him from sharing some sensitive information. But House Oversight Committee chair James Comer (R-Ky.), who is leading the investigation, has rejected those claims.
“On the advice of his legal counsel, Dr. O’Connor refused to answer questions that invaded the well-established legal privilege that protects confidential matters between physicians and their patients,” the statement read. “His assertion of his right under the Fifth Amendment to decline to answer questions, also on the advice of his lawyers, was made necessary by the unique circumstances of this deposition.
The statement also cited President Donald Trump’s own invocation of his Fifth Amendment right before his deposition with New York State Attorney General Letitia James, quoting Trump’s suggestion that only “an absolute fool” would refuse to take the Fifth.
Biden White House doctor Kevin O’Connor’s closed-door House Oversight Committee interview is over
— Liz Elkind (@liz_elkind) July 9, 2025
“No comments to press,” his lawyers said
Source familiar tells me O’Connor pled the 5th pic.twitter.com/LIJa6pY2BF
O’Connor requested that Congress delay his appearance, citing concerns about sharing information protected by doctor/patient privilege. The Associated Press reported that he is seeking a delay to ensure that privileged information is not shared. He recently asked to delay his requested testimony because he hopes to hammer out an agreement that will protect doctor-patient confidentiality.
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Dr. Kevin O’Connor, who served as Biden’s physician at the White House, requested a delay until the end of July or early August “to reach an accommodation that will protect the very substantial privilege and confidentiality interests of Dr. O’Connor and former President Biden,” according to a letter from his lawyer sent to Rep. James Comer of Kentucky on Saturday. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the letter.
A spokesperson for Oversight Republicans said the committee will follow the House’s deposition guidelines, which allow for witnesses to assert privilege on a question-by-question basis, with the committee chair ruling on each claim. But O’Connor is not allowed, in the committee’s view, to delay or decline a congressional subpoena due to concerns over questions about potentially privileged information.
The back-and-forth is part of a broader struggle over the scope of the House Republican inquiry into Biden’s age and mental fitness, with serious implications for both politics and policy. Republicans have also claimed that some policies carried out by the White House “autopen” may be invalid if it is proven that Biden was mentally incapacitated for some part of his term.
Here’s what’s happening: House Republicans are trying to show that Biden’s cognitive issues severely impacted his presidency to the point that his staffers essentially ran the country during his term. O’Connor and his legal team know this and are trying to prevent lawmakers from getting to the truth.
This probably won’t work.
Even with O’Connor’s invocation of the Fifth Amendment, it is likely that Congress might just find what they are looking for even without his help. It was abundantly clear that Biden’s mental acuity was lacking all throughout his presidency. There have already been indications that he was not up to the job and that several executive orders were signed with the autopen without his knowledge.
With Republicans in charge of the White House and the legislature, there won’t be enough roadblocks preventing them from ascertaining what was going on in the White House over the past four years. At some point, America will find out the truth — and it will probably be uglier than we think.
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