Sen. Mitch McConnell was briefly unconscious after a fall last month and was then treated for pneumonia while hospitalized, the Kentucky Republican said in a statement released Sunday. He also released a photo of himself holding a copy of the Sports section of the July 12 edition of The Washington Post.
McConnell, 84, has been absent from the Senate since June 14. His office provided sparse updates throughout the hospitalization, leaving questions about his condition circulating for weeks. Reports that emergency services had responded to a case of cardiac arrest at his home intensified speculation.
McConnell addressed those reports directly. "[L]ast month, I took a fall which landed me in the hospital," McConnell said in the statement to his constituents. "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. I don't have any tumors or hemorrhages. But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital."
He also said he "had to deal with a mild case of pneumonia" while in the hospital.
McConnell, who is a polio survivor, said he remains fit to serve but will not return to the Senate floor immediately. "As much as it frustrates me, this process takes time. And on the advice of my doctors, I won't be able to return to the Senate floor to vote quite yet," he said. "But rest assured that, in the meantime, I'm not taking a break from the Senate business that matters to you. I've been working closely with my legislative staff on current issues, and with my Kentucky team who help me provide timely constituent services across our Commonwealth."
Last week, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear had requested that McConnell provide an update on his health and fitness to serve. Sunday's statement was McConnell's first direct public accounting of what happened.
McConnell is the longest-serving party leader in Senate history. He stepped down from the Senate GOP leader post at the beginning of this Congress, handing the role to Sen. John Thune of South Dakota. McConnell is set to retire at the end of his term next year.
