White House defends taking records from Donald Trump's former doctor

The White House said on Wednesday that President Donald Trump's former bodyguard did nothing out of the ordinary when he took possession of the president's medical records last year, despite a claim by Trump's former doctor that the episode felt like a "raid."

Harold Bornstein, Trump's longtime personal doctor, told NBC News that Keith Schiller, the president's longtime bodyguard and former director of Oval Office operations, showed up at his office in February 2017 along with two other men to collect the records, leaving Bornstein feeling "raped, frightened and sad."

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders disputed the doctor's characterisation of the episode.

"As is standard operating procedure for a new president, the White House Medical Unit took possession of the president's medical records," she told reporters at a White House briefing.

As for Bornstein's description that it had had the feel of a raid, she said, "No, that is not my understanding." Bornstein told NBC that Schiller and another "large man" were in his office about 30 minutes and "created a lot of chaos." The doctor said the two men were joined by Alan Garten, the chief legal officer for the Trump Organization. A spokeswoman for the Trump Organization did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

The incident at Bornstein's office came two days after the doctor told The New York Times that Trump takes Propecia, a drug for enlarged prostates that is often prescribed to stimulate hair growth in men. Bornstein told the Times that he prescribed Trump drugs for rosacea and cholesterol as well.

Bornstein told NBC that Trump's longtime personal secretary called him after the story ran and said: "So you wanted to be the White House doctor? Forget it, you're out.'" Bornstein said he wasn't given a form authorising him to release Trump's records, but said Schiller and Garten took the originals and copies of Trump's charts and lab reports, including records filed under pseudonyms the office used.

Questions were raised about the legality of the seizure. Patients have a right to a copy of their medical records but the original physical record belongs to the doctor, said Dr. Matthew Wynia, director of the Centre for Bioethics and Humanities at the University of Colorado.