Speculation regarding President Trump’s health is irrelevant as it won’t see him removed from office

THE comments about President Trump’s health, both physical and mental, are concerning and a lot of print space has been devoted to it and the possible ramifications.

There are many precedents of presidents with hidden illnesses — Franklin D Roosevelt with polio, John F Kennedy with Addisons disease and Ronald Reagan, who more than likely had undiagnosed Alzheimer’s.

A number of leaders in the US and other countries have either hidden, or lied about, frailties that would have kept them out of the job. Sadly, there are also many apparently healthy who suddenly pass on. Doctors are subject to rules of privileged information and cannot generally be required to divulge patient information.

A permitted report could range from ‘in good health for their age’ (basically still alive) through to ‘has some concerning health issues’ (make sure they pay the account on the way out).

The more detailed the report, the more it can be interpreted, with a blood pressure reading of 140/100 being high for most people. Any release of information will need detailed notes and explanations for the majority of readers.

Even if there are medical concerns, they probably won’t matter — unless they are severe mental health issues, which probably is not being assessed.

The complexities of trying to remove a ‘broken’ leader generally requires the support of both sides and this is not going to happen.

DENNIS FITZGERALD Melbourne, Australia