Rand Paul Questions Mitch McConnell’s Exam Results as ‘Not Believable’: ‘That’s Not a Symptom of Dehydration’

As Mitch McConnell's team continues to insist the Republican is fit to serve in Congress, his fellow Kentucky senator, who has been practicing medicine for 25 years, is not convinced the Senate minority leader is being fully forthcoming about his health.

Speaking to Politico, Republican Sen. Rand Paul said a letter about McConnell's health by a Capitol physician this week "wasn't particularly helpful."

In the letter, Dr. Brian Monaghan, the attending physician of U.S. Congress, wrote that 81-year-old McConnell underwent an examination on Aug. 30, shortly after a second recent episode in which he froze mid-press conference (and on the heels of a hospitalization for a concussion in March).

Monaghan wrote that the examination of the senator included MRI imaging, an EEG study and "consultations with several neurologists for a comprehensive neurology assessment."

"There is no evidence that you have a seizure disorder or that you experienced a stroke, TIA [also known as a mini stroke], or movement disorder such as Parkinson’s disease," Monaghan wrote in the letter, which was addressed to McConnell.

In an earlier letter about McConnell, Monaghan wrote that “occasional lightheadedness is not uncommon in concussion recovery and can also be expected as a result of dehydration."

But Paul — an ophthalmologist — remains unconvinced, telling Politico: "I don’t think it’s been particularly helpful to have the Senate doctor describe it as dehydration — which I think even non-physicians seeing that, probably aren’t really accepting that explanation. What’s occurring from what I’ve seen, it’s a neurological event."

Speaking to The Hill on Wednesday morning, Paul called the Senate doctor's report "not believable," saying, "When you get dehydrated you don’t have moments where your eyes look in the distance with a vacant look and you’re sort of basically unconscious with your eyes open. That is not a symptom of dehydration."

Paul also claimed that the tests conducted on McConnell are not capable of ruling out a seizure disorder.

“Now if you get an EEG and it’s normal, does that mean he doesn’t have a seizure disorder? No, that means that you didn’t find it because he didn’t have a seizure while he was having the test,” Paul told The Hill.

McConnell, whose current term is slated to end in January of 2027, has in recent weeks faced growing questions about his health following the two episodes in which he suddenly stopped speaking and stared forward in the middle of press conferences.

Both incidents occurred in the months after McConnell spent nearly five days at a hospital following a fall in Washington, D.C. in March.

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Recently, McConnell's team has been working to project confidence in the senator's health. On Tuesday, he participated in a Senate leadership conference and on Wednesday, attended a meeting of the entire Senate GOP.