How past U.S. presidents have battled illness in office
A hidden stroke. A heart attack that was presented as indigestion. The American presidency’s history of incapacity and sickness.
The announcement by President Trump that he has tested positive for COVID-19 makes him the latest in a long line of presidents who have battled serious illness in office. According to the New York Times, Trump has a fever, congestion, and a cough, and will undergo tests at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he will stay for a few days.
Four presidents died from natural causes while in office—and, for some, the cause of death remains in dispute. (Another four were assassinated.) Presidents have suffered strokes, heart attacks, and severe gastrointestinal diseases. Woodrow Wilson was stricken with the Spanish flu, the last great pandemic, before suffering a stroke six months later.
For much of history, though, it
