In a Washington Post column, Abigail Trafford raised a question about the reportage of the health of presidents and presidential candidates. She noted that the past has made us cautious about White House cover-ups regarding presidents' illnesses. Yet she pointed to an interesting dilemma: that of the confidentiality of the doctor-patient relationship. How can we reconcile the public's right to know with a public figure's right to this confidential relationship? Trafford brings up a suggestion posed by historian Robert H. Ferrell that "the personal physicians of the president be scrutinized by Congress." Ferrell believes that this would deter physicians from saying anything untruthful regarding the president's health. But Trafford points out that this would cause many doctors to reconsider becoming the president's doctor if it meant being questioned by Congress. Robert S. Robins, a professor of political science at Tulane University, is quoted in the column as believing that this could result in the president's ending up with a choice he doesn't want. Robins says, "This could lead a president to forgo treatment rather than see his doctor or to secretly consult people he trusts." Trafford herself believes that some information from medical reports can also be misleading if they are not followed up on.

This passage implies that if Congress were involved in the choice of the president's doctor, the

A. president would no longer be able to consult Congress on certain crucial issues.
B. American public would no longer need to know so many specific details about the health of the president.
C. White House could no longer cover up details about the health of the president.
D. president's doctor would totally respect the confidentiality of the president.
E. president would not agree to accept the choice of doctor.



In this passage, "reconcile" most nearly means

A. coordinate.
B. merge.
C. reunite.
D. assuage.
E. pacify.



The author of the passage most likely agrees with which view as described in the passage?

A. Personal physicians of the president should be scrutinized by Congress.
B. The current system of choosing a doctor for the president is flawed.
C. The White House no longer covers up the health of the president quite so much as it used to.
D. There would probably be a smaller pool of doctors to choose from if Congress had a say in the choice of doctors for the president.
E. The press publishes too much information about the health of the president.