Mitch McConnell Released from Hospital, Sent to Rehab for Recovery

TUESDAY, March 14, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was released from the hospital on Monday and sent to a rehabilitation facility, after suffering a concussion last Wednesday night following a fall at a dinner.

“Leader McConnell’s concussion recovery is proceeding well and the Leader was discharged from the hospital today," McConnell's Communications Director David Popp said in a statement. "At the advice of his physician, the next step will be a period of physical therapy at an inpatient rehabilitation facility before he returns home."

“Over the course of treatment this weekend, the Leader’s medical team discovered that he also suffered a minor rib fracture on Wednesday, for which he is also being treated," Popp added.

Exactly when the 81-year-old, who is the longest-serving Senate Republican leader in history, might return to the Senate is unclear.

A Senate aide said McConnell’s doctors will decide how long he stays in rehab, but the aide noted that post-hospitalization stays often last one to two weeks, the Washington Post reported.

Meanwhile, the minority leader has been in touch with Senate colleagues by text from the hospital and met at the hospital with Senate staff members and other advisers, according to the New York Times.

Democrats have a slim 51-49 majority in the U.S. Senate and have recently needed Vice President Kamala Harris to cast tie-breaking votes on some judicial nominations as some Democrats have been absent. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.), 53, is working remotely during treatment for depression and unable to vote because he is not physically present. Meanwhile, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), 89, is also out, after being hospitalized with shingles, the Times reported.

McConnell was previously injured in 2019, having surgery after fracturing his shoulder on a patio at his home in Louisville, the Post reported. The senator, who was struck by polio as a child, also has a history of heart issues and had triple bypass surgery in 2003.

More information

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on falls in older adults.

SOURCE: Washington Post; New York Times