WATCH: Bernie Sanders Promised to Release ‘All the Medical Records’ Following Heart Attack, Now Says He Probably Won’t
Independent Vermont Senator and Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders said he will “probably not” release any medical records in addition to the doctors’ notes his campaign has put out, despite a promise he made — following his heart attack — to release “all of the medical records” to the public.
Sanders was hospitalized following “chest discomfort” on October 1, but it was several days before the campaign acknowledged the event was a heart attack. During an interview several days later, CNN’s Sanjay Gupta asked Sanders about that, and Sanders’ reply included a promise for complete medical transparency.
“Of course, we’re — of course, people do have a right to know about the health of a senator and somebody who is running for president of the United States, full disclosure,” Sanders replied, and added “And we will make, at the appropriate time, all of our medical records public for you or anybody else who wants to see them.”
“But the first concern I think that people had was to understand what was going on before we’re going to reveal information dribble by dribble,” he continued. “But we released — we will release all the records.”
And in an October 13 interview, ABC News’ Jon Karl asked Sanders “are you gonna release all your medical records?”
“Absolutely. Absolutely. Yes,” Sanders replied, and promised to do so “as soon as we can,” and “with all of the information that’s available.”
The “appropriate time” turned out to be Monday, when Sanders released letters from three doctors detailing his medical history and current condition, which stated that he “has the mental and physical stamina to fully undertake the rigors of the Presidency.”
At a press conference Tuesday, Sanders was asked if he planned to release any records to supplement the doctors’ letters.
“Yesterday you decided to release a few letters from doctors about your medical status. Should we expect any further information from you?” a reporter asked Sanders.
“I think we have released, it’s not just a few letters, as I understand it, we released two letters from cardiologists who are quite well known and one letter from the capitol physician,” Sanders said, adding “So I think we have done everything that, plus, what other candidates have done.”
Asked again if he’d be releasing more information, Sanders said “I think probably not.”
Sanders is correct that his release of letters from his doctors is roughly in line with what other candidates have released. Former Vice President Joe Biden released a detailed medical summary several weeks ago that concluded he is “a healthy, vigorous, 77-year-old male, who is fit to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency.”
It’s also similar to what 2016 Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton released within days of a minor health episode.
Sanders followed that press conference Tuesday by leading reporters around as he knocked on doors with volunteers in Iowa.
Watch the clip above via Fox News.
