Which U.S. presidents have released full medical records to the public?
Executive summary
No U.S. law requires presidents to publish full medical records; instead, disclosure has been a political choice and a patchwork of press statements, doctors’ letters and selective records released by candidates and presidents [1]. Public disclosures range from detailed medical summaries (e.g., Ronald Reagan released medical records and letters from doctors) to terse physician letters or synopses; reporting shows candidates began routinely releasing medical information in the mid-1990s but full, comprehensive medical-record dumps are rare [2] [3].
1. Tradition, not law: why full records are optional
There is no legal requirement for a president to disclose medical records; the 25th Amendment addresses succession and incapacity but not a medical-disclosure standard, and presidential records rules protect personnel and medical files from public release as private information [1] [4]. Journalists and doctors note the result is an uneasy middle ground where voters depend on voluntary disclosures and periodic physician summaries rather than exhaustive charts or test results [3] [5].
2. What “full medical records” means — and why few presidents supply them
“Full medical records” would include clinical notes, test results, diagnoses, medications and hospital records. Most presidents provide a physician’s synopsis or letters and sometimes specific test results; historically, a wholesale public release of complete, raw records is uncommon because of privacy norms and the president’s interest in maintaining a confidential doctor–patient relationship [2] [5].
3. Examples of more-complete disclosures: Reagan and later candidates
Ronald Reagan publicly released medical records and letters from doctors and authorized his physician to speak with the press — an early example of robust disclosure for a president or presidential candidate [2] [6]. Ballotpedia traces a broader trend in which candidates from the mid-1990s onward provided more detailed health information, but even this trend favored summaries and doctor statements over full chart releases [2].
4. Modern practice: summaries, memos and selective test releases
Contemporary presidencies typically issue physician memos, and on occasion the White House will release specific test results. For example, in late 2025 the White House released a memo saying certain advanced imaging showed “perfectly normal” cardiovascular and abdominal results after an MRI; that disclosure was selective, describing test findings rather than publishing full medical records [7] [8]. Media outlets and medical commentators note this is consistent with long-standing practice: selective reassurance rather than complete transparency [3] [9].
5. The argument for full disclosure and the counterargument for privacy
Advocates, including some physicians and journalists, argue that detailed records allow voters to assess fitness for office and avoid ambiguity when health issues arise [9]. Opponents—medical ethicists and some clinicians—say mandatory full disclosure would damage doctor–patient confidentiality and might deter candid medical care for stigmatizing conditions [5]. Both arguments appear repeatedly in the reporting; neither side is settled in law [5] [9].
6. Notable absences and contested claims
Some modern presidents and presidential candidates have resisted releasing full records, prompting public debate; reporting highlights Donald Trump’s history of limited disclosure and repeated calls from opponents to release full medical records, while noting that the findings of routine physicals can only be released with the president’s consent [10] [3]. Available sources do not mention a definitive list of every president who has ever released "full medical records" in the sense of complete clinical charts; instead, the record shows individual examples of letters, doctor statements and selective document releases [2] [4].
7. How to interpret presidential health disclosures going forward
Expect disclosure to remain selective unless Congress or voters demand a change; the Presidential Records Act protects certain medical files, and there is no statutory disclosure threshold that would force complete transparency [4] [1]. Reporters and scholars will continue to judge presidents on a mix of released documents, physician summaries and observable performance — a system the public-policy and medical-opinion pieces call imperfect but persistent [3] [5].
Limitations: this analysis uses only the provided sources and therefore cannot catalog every historical instance; available sources emphasize examples and norms rather than a complete, definitive list of presidents who have released “full medical records” [2] [4].