Central Coast experts react to President Trump’s hospitalization
SALINAS, Calif (KION) Medical and political experts on the Central Coast weighed in on Friday to President Donald Trump's admission to a military hospital.
Monterey-based political analyst Dr. David Anderson says this is really an unprecedented time we are witnessing, where a sitting US president faces a serious health crisis just about a month away from a major election.
"We can talk about other presidents that have been disabled, but this particular time and situation is very unusual," said Dr. Anderson.
There have typically been "October Surprises" right before a presidential election; never has it directly involved the president's health and his capacity to campaign.
There is also the question of what happens should President Trump's health deteriorate. The emergency department director at SVMHS, Carla Spencer, says these next few days for the president are critical.
"The vast majority of what we see in the hospital here are patients that have been diagnosed with COVID and they come back about five to seven days later with worsening symptoms," said Spencer, who is also a registered nurse.
That could include pneumonia and difficulty breathing where a ventilator is required.
But luckily, the president's early treatment with experimental drug therapies could keep those symptoms from getting worse, according to SVMHS experts.
The president, however, at 74 years old, is in that high risk category that would normally concern hospital staff here.
"That's where we see patients that come in that do have worsening symptoms. They are older, sometimes have multiple medical problems, so it is a little high risk once they're in that age category," said Spencer.
While the US government can still function smoothly with an incapacitated president, Dr. Anderson believes Trump will maintain power.
"It's very unlikely that Trump would pass over the authority to the vice president unless he really, really was like on a ventilator or something where he really just couldn't function," he said.
And as far as the election goes, Dr. Anderson believes this crisis would not sway anyone to vote differently.
"There are very few people out there still to be persuaded. Most people know how they're going to vote one way or another, and many people have already voted," said Dr. Anderson.
Dr. Anderson says it is important for the public to not believe everything they see on social media regarding President Trump's COVID-19 battle. The hospital hopes this crisis will push people to be more vigilant in their own lives during the pandemic.
PREVIOUS ARTICLE:
Several medical and political experts on the Central Coast weighed in on the unprecedented situation happening in Washington, D.C., where a sitting U.S. president has just been hospitalized for COVID-19.
Dr. David Anderson, a Monterey County political analyst, tells KION he cannot think of a time in American history where a president faced a serious health crisis like this on the eve of a major election.
KION's Josh Kristianto will have more tonight at 10 and 11 p.m., including insight on the severity of the coronavirus who fits President Trump's health profile.
