The authors behind a new book about the Trump administration have revealed that the one subject they struggled to get to the bottom of was President Donald Trump’s health.
In Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump, Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan of the New York Times described Trump’s medical condition as one of the administration’s most tightly controlled areas of information, arguing that even well-connected reporters have struggled to obtain details beyond White House statements.
Haberman said Trump’s health has long been treated as a “very-specific lockbox” by both the president and his advisers, who view discussions about illness as a sign of weakness, according to an interview in the Guardian.
“Illness freaks him out; he perceives illness as weakness, usually, and he certainly perceives any sense that he is having an issue as a projection of weakness, and his advisers are very, very attuned to that,” she told the outlet.
“So the number of people who actually know what is happening with his health … they’ve provided less and less information, except for saying things like, ‘He saw 22 specialists,’ but they won’t say who the specialists are at Walter Reed [National Military Medical Center], and it has been on just a sliding scale since term one,” Haberman continued. “Frankly, 2018, I think, was the last time we got real information. Remember, they were not honest at all about how sick he was during Covid in 2020, and so we’ve never really known the extent of that, or any after-effects.
“Will we know before the end of his term if there is something more significant? Doesn’t seem likely on that trajectory. I don’t want to make predictions.”
The revelations come amid renewed attention on Trump’s health following several visits to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center between 2025 and 2026. He most recently underwent a “routine annual” medical in May.
Following his physical, Trump, 80, said he took a cognitive test and “got every answer right,” later touting the results as proof of his fitness for office.
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Attention has repeatedly been drawn to bruising on his hand, clearly visible in public appearances. The White House has attributed the bruising to frequent handshaking and Trump’s use of aspirin as part of a cardiovascular health regimen, dismissing speculation that it signaled a more serious medical condition.
Despite those assurances, Haberman and Swan argue that independent reporting on Trump’s health remains unusually difficult. According to the authors, the administration has maintained strict control over sensitive information, limiting access to details about the president’s condition and medical care.