Doctors areconcerned about Trump's mental health.
Doctors Warn Trump’s Health Makes Him a Nuclear Risk
May 11 2026, Published 3:18 p.m. ET
A group of 36 medical professionals has warned that President Donald Trump’s mental health and control over the nation’s nuclear arsenal pose an urgent public danger. They are calling for his removal from office through lawful constitutional means.
The doctors, including neurologists, psychiatrists, and other physicians experienced in cognitive disorders and risk assessment, stated that Trump’s public behavior shows signs of worsening cognitive and psychological impairment.
Trump says the Iran ceasefire remains fragile.
They clarified that they had not examined the president in person and were not providing a formal diagnosis. Their statement was based on his public remarks and conduct over the past year.
The group said that Trump, 79, should be removed from direct authority over nuclear weapons urgently. They cited disorganized speech, factual confusion, rambling public comments, impulsive threats, and unusual social media activity.
“It is our professional opinion that Donald Trump's behaviors are not momentary lapses or political theater,” the doctors said in the statement, according to The Daily Beast. “They reflect a rapidly worsening, reality-untethered, increasingly dangerous decline.”
The statement was entered into the Congressional Record on April 30 by Democratic Senators Sheldon Whitehouse and Jack Reed of Rhode Island. The doctors emphasized that Trump’s access to nuclear weapons adds urgency, as the president has sole authority to order a nuclear strike, and no official has clear power to block such an order once given.
The group called on senior officials, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to consider whether Trump should keep control over nuclear codes.
They also urged the use of the 25th Amendment, which allows the vice president and Cabinet to declare a president unable to perform the duties of office.
The medical professionals cited various public examples in their statement, including what they described as Trump’s obsession with political enemies, late-night posting patterns, and images showing him as the pope and as a combat pilot.
They also noted episodes of apparent fatigue during public events and sudden shifts in his remarks on domestic and foreign policy.
The Daily Beast reported that the group highlighted Trump’s recent focus on cognitive tests, which he has touted as proof of his intelligence.
The Montreal Cognitive Assessment, often mentioned in discussions about presidential cognitive testing, screens for possible signs of cognitive impairment but does not measure IQ.
Trump pictured at an event.
The White House dismissed the doctors' claims. Spokesperson Davis Ingle told The Daily Beast that Trump is “the sharpest and most accessible President in American history” and “remains in excellent health.”
The doctors' statement followed an April 10 letter from Rep. Jamie Raskin, the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, to White House physician Capt. Sean Barbabella.
Raskin requested that Barbabella conduct a thorough cognitive assessment of Trump, release the results to Congress, and provide details about the president’s physical and mental health.
Trump’s last annual physical occurred on April 11, 2025, according to The Daily Beast. The outlet reported that the White House did not respond to a question on Monday about when Trump would receive his 2026 annual physical.