WASHINGTON — Former White House physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor cut his interview with House lawmakers short, citing patient privilege as a protection not to answer questions about his tenure in the Biden administration.
O’Connor arrived at his closed-door deposition just after 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday and left only an hour later, refusing to answer questions from reporters before or after the meeting. Former President Joe Biden’s doctor pleaded the 5th Amendment during the closed-door interview, arguing he must adhere to patient-doctor confidentiality rules.
O’Connor’s lawyers listed two “overlapping grounds” that absolved him from testifying, arguing he has an “ethical duty of confidentiality” to refuse sharing details about “his care and treatment of President Biden.” Additionally, his lawyers pointed to an ongoing investigation by the Justice Department that “leaves Dr. O’Connor (with) no choice but to invoke his constitutional rights” under the 5th amendment.
“We want to emphasize that asserting the Fifth Amendment privilege does not imply that Dr. O’Connor has committed any crime,” his lawyers wrote in a statement.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., subpoenaed O’Connor last month after the physician refused requests to sit down voluntarily for an interview with House lawmakers. Republican lawmakers have long been investigating the Biden family and wanted to “discuss (O’Connor’s) medical assessments and involvement in the Biden family’s influence peddling racket.”
O’Connor, who has been Joe Biden’s doctor since 2009, has been of special interest to GOP lawmakers as they investigate whether White House officials hid the former president’s mental decline while in office.
After the subpoena, Biden officials sought to delay O’Connor’s interview, claiming he needed more time to satisfy “legal and ethical obligations” before he could testify — arguing he could lose his medical license if he did not adhere to patient-doctor confidentiality rules. Comer rejected that request.
The committee chairman criticized the physician for refusing questions, accusing the Biden administration of a “conspiracy to cover up President Biden’s cognitive decline.”
“The American people demand transparency, but Dr. O’Connor would rather conceal the truth,” Comer said in a statement. “Dr. O’Connor took the Fifth when asked if he was told to lie about President Biden’s health and whether he was fit to be President of the United States. Congress must assess legislative solutions to prevent such a coverup from happening again. We will continue to interview more Biden White House aides to get the answers Americans deserve.”