After weeks of questions, McConnell provides information on health
Published in News & Features
Former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Sunday ended weeks of speculation about his health with a statement saying he’s on the mend.
The Kentucky Republican, who was hospitalized June 14, issued a letter to fellow Kentuckians telling them he has been recovering from a fall, followed by what he termed “a mild case of pneumonia.”
The 84-year-old McConnell, a survivor of childhood polio, has faced mobility challenges throughout his life. On Sunday, he said a mobility-related fall “landed me in the hospital.”
“My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion. I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke,” he said. “I don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages. But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital. While receiving excellent care over the past several weeks, I’ve also had to deal with a mild case of pneumonia.”
He said he recently moved from hospital care “to a rehabilitation center where I’ll keep regaining my strength.”
McConnell, a seven-term lawmaker who is retiring at the end of this term, said on the advice of doctors, he won’t yet return to the Senate floor to vote, “but rest assured that, in the meantime, I’m not taking a break from the Senate business that matters to you.”
He said he’s worked closely with his legislative staff and his Kentucky team on constituent services.
“You’re right to expect your representatives to work hard for you. And part of my decision to retire at the end of my term this coming January was being honest about the demands of Senate work,” he said. “But I still have unfinished business to complete on your behalf, and I have every intention of finishing the job you elected me to do.”
His statement was accompanied by a photo of himself and wife Elaine Chao, a former Transportation secretary, in which he held the Sunday, July 12, edition of the Washington Post sports page.
The release also included a note from the Office of the Attending Physician confirming that McConnell fell four weeks ago, sustaining minor injuries, and that “a comprehensive evaluation by a multidisciplinary team determined that he had no fractures, cardiac abnormalities, stroke, tumor, or hemorrhage.”
“The remainder of his hospital stay focused on physical therapy and strategies to reduce his risk of future falls,” the statement read. “He has been medically cleared to continue fully participating in his intensive physical therapy program.”
Speculation about McConnell’s health reached a fever pitch last week, with some theorizing that he had already died. In response, multiple GOP lawmakers including McConnell’s successor as majority leader, Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, said they had spoken with the Kentucky Republican.
Those statements did little to quell the rumors. On Wednesday, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear sent a letter to McConnell’s office requesting an update on the “current status” of his health.
“Allowing speculation to continue in the media is not fair to the Senator or to Kentuckians,” Beshear, a Democrat, said in a statement.
McConnell’s statement came hours after one of his Republican colleagues in the Senate, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, died at the age of 71.
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