Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Jul 12
McConnell Delays Senate Return After June 14 Fall and Pneumonia at 84
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Jul 12

McConnell Delays Senate Return After June 14 Fall and Pneumonia at 84

3 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Jul 12

Summary

  • McConnell said Sunday he will not return to the Senate floor to vote yet, ending weeks of silence about the health issue that has kept him away since mid-June.
  • The 84-year-old Kentucky Republican said a June 14 fall left him briefly unconscious and hospitalized, and that he also developed a mild case of pneumonia during treatment.
  • Doctors found no broken bones, concussion, heart attack, stroke, tumors or hemorrhages, and McConnell said he has since been moved from hospital care to a rehabilitation center.
  • His office released a photo of McConnell with his wife and a Sunday Washington Post after pressure mounted for proof of his condition as his hospital stay neared one month.
  • McConnell linked the setback to long-running mobility challenges from childhood polio, underscoring renewed scrutiny of the health of aging U.S. senators.

Insights

When a leader's health fails, where is the line between personal privacy and public duty?
Should aging public officials face mandatory health reviews to ensure their fitness to serve?