White House Secrets: Medical Lies and Cover-Ups (Medical Fiascoes)
by Gail Jarrow
288 pages; ages 10-17
Calkins Creek, 2025
Given all the political goings-on this year, this seems like a perfect time for a book about White House secrets to hit the shelves. And a perfect time to reflect on the medical fiascoes that have occurred during past presidencies. With that in mind, let’s head up to Capitol Hill – or at least open the cover of the book and dive in.
Did you know that eight US presidents died in office? And that more than a third of our presidents became seriously ill during their term in office? “Yet,” writes Gail Jarrow, “Americans were deliberately kept in the dark… Lies were told. Cover-ups were orchestrated.”
Gail writes from the position that Americans have a right to know whether their elected leader is healthy enough to perform the duties of his office. But sometimes family members hide health problems. Sometimes it’s presidential aides hiding their leader’s infirmities. And sometimes it’s the president himself – whether out of self-preservation or denial.
When James Garfield died of an infected gunshot wound, his vice president, Chester Arthur took over. Unfortunately, he had a kidney disease that resulted in fatigue, among other issues. Meanwhile, he staged photo opportunities to show himself as a hale and hardy outdoorsman, writes Gail.
Gail also examines the presidencies of Grover Cleveland, Woodrow Wilson, Warren Harding, FDR, John F. Kennedy, Ronald Regan, and Joe Biden. The first page of each chapter includes fast facts: dates elected, biographical information, and their term in office. Within the chapter, Gail discusses the politics surrounding their presidencies, their health issues, legal and political ramifications, and what happens when a president is incapable of making decisions.
I particularly liked the last chapter, in which Gail talks about the influence of a president on the American people, and reasons why they hid their health problems. “Grover Cleveland feared his cancer diagnosis would trigger a financial crisis,” she notes. Others have kept serious illnesses secret to “maintain power and prevent the vice president from taking over.”
The thing is, Gail points out, that there is no law that requires a candidate or sitting president to take a physical or cognitive test to prove that they are capable of performing the duties of the office. And asking for transparency about a president’s health raises a lot of questions. For example, is the president’s right to privacy more important than the public’s right to know medical details? Should certain medical conditions be disqualifying?
This book is a great resource for teachers and school libraries, offering jumping-off point for discussions and debates about history, politics, health, and ethics. I give it a rating of 5 stethoscopes.
The Medical Fiascoes series includes Blood and Germs, which follows the advances in medicine during the Civil War and American Murderer about the parasite that haunted the south, which I reviewed here.
Thanks for dropping by today. On Monday we'll be hanging out at Marvelous Middle Grade Monday with other bloggers. It's over at Greg Pattridge's blog, Always in the Middle, so hop over to see what other people are reading. Review copy provided by the publisher.
