President Trump required doctors at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to sign non-disclosure agreements during his surprise visit in 2019, NBC News reports.
Trump, according to the report, "mandated signed NDAs from both physicians and nonmedical staff" when he visited Walter Reed in 2019, although at least two doctors reportedly refused to sign them and, therefore, weren't allowed to be involved in treating him.
When the president paid an unannounced visit to Walter Reed in November 2019, the White House said this was so he could "begin portions of his routine annual physical exam" ahead of a "very busy 2020," although The Washington Post reported at the time that "it is unusual for a president to undergo a physical exam in multiple stages months apart."
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NBC notes that since federal law already prohibits anyone providing medical care from revealing a patient's personal health information without consent, it's unclear why Trump would require NDAs on top of that.
"Ethically and legally you can ask for an NDA, but you don't need one," NYU Grossman School of Medicine director of medical ethics Arthur Caplan told NBC News. "Doctors can't share information with anyone except anyone caring for the patient or anyone billing the patient. And ultimately it's up to the patient whether or not the doctor can share information. It's more redundant than unethical."
This report comes amid ongoing questions regarding Trump's recent COVID-19 diagnosis and hospitalization. The president's physician, Dr. Sean Conley, has evaded numerous questions from reporters and declined to say when Trump last tested negative for COVID-19 prior to his positive test last week. NBC reports it's not clear whether Trump had the same NDA requirement when he was recently hospitalized with COVID-19 at Walter Reed.
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