Was Trump admitted to Walter Reed Hospital? Conspiracy theories erupt online about US President’s health

If you went on social media over the Easter long weekend, you likely saw reports that the US President was in hospital and the White House was covering it up. This is what we know.

Donald Trump’s health has been the subject of wide speculation for years. This weekend was no exception, with the lack of media appearances from the US President fuelling conspiracy theories.

On Saturday, US time, claims started to emerge online that Mr Trump had been “rushed to Walter Reed Hospital”, a national military hospital in Maryland near the White House.

When a US President is in DC and needs medical attention, this is where they go.

Mr Trump has gone to Walter Reed Hospital while in office before, outside of regular physicals, most notably when he went there after testing positive for COVID-19 during the pandemic.

This weekend unconfirmed theories emerged online, some with videos of a motorcade racing through streets to the hospital.

Some claimed streets were shut down and that the White House press office had issued a notice stating there were no public appearances remaining for the day.

As those claims gained speed, others attempted to rubbish the claims, posting images of a Marine Guard standing outside the Oval Office, a constant when the US President is in the room.

Across social media for the next few hours, usually credible sources online continued to push their version that the US President had or had not been hospitalised.

Mr Trump was seen at his Trump National Golf Club in Washington on Sunday, a moment that did not quash rumours. In response, more videos showing mounting emergency response teams readying and posts about Mr Trump flooded feeds.

Eventually, White House officials stated that Mr Trump had not been hospitalised and was not at Walter Reed Hospital.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reshared a post on X which said that while Mr Trump, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and other high-ranking Pentagon officials were orchestrating the successful rescue of a stranded airman in Iran, “the left” were pushing the fake news.

Across the weekend, Mr Trump was active on social media.

It’s not the first time the rumour, literally the exact same rumour, has spread.

Last year, across August and September, reports persisted for days that the US President was seriously unwell, or even potentially dead.

Then, the first “proof of life” was a filmed clip of the US President leaving a golf course, something that was quickly dissected by conspiracy theorists online who claimed to find inconsistencies.

Potentially stoking fires more at the time was an announcement issued by the White House, which said the “the president” would make an “announcement”, sharing practically no details.

Mr Trump has confirmed a press conference on Monday from the White House to speak about the US military operation to rescue the downed airmen, so if something is up, the US President only has a few hours to get himself back to good health to shutdown the latest conspiracy theories.