Sen. John Fetterman, D-Penn., checked himself into Walter Reed hospital on Feb. 16. after feeling lightheaded eight days earlier. The next week he checked himself back into the hospital for post-stroke depression.
On Thursday, spokesperson Joe Calvello reportedly said, “He’ll be back soon, at least over a week, but soon.”
But the timeline just got longer.
Fetterman is set to leave Walter Reed within the next two weeks at the soonest, an insider reportedly told CNN.
The doctors want more time to make the senator’s “medication balance exactly right,” another insider reportedly added.
“For instance, doctors learned his blood pressure med was too high, which may have contributed to dizziness when he went to GW hospital last month,” CNN’s Manu Raju said.
Fetterman’s doctors expect him to become “as good or better than his best days post-stroke,” according to CNN.
Fetterman has long suffered from heart conditions, according to a 2022 letter from his cardiologist. In 2017, the Pennsylvania Democrat was reportedly diagnosed with “atrial fibrillation, an irregular heart rhythm, along with a decreased heart pump.” He subsequently lost about 150 pounds, but he said that he discontinued his medications, much to his regret.
In 2019, Fetterman reportedly collapsed while presiding over the state Senate. And during his U.S. senate campaign he nearly died from a stroke that has left Fetterman with permanent brain damage.
Chief of Staff Adam Jentleson said three weeks ago that Fetterman “will be back soon.”
“John is well on his way to recovery and wanted me to say how grateful he is for all the well wishes,” the staffer assured his Twitter followers on March 6. “He’s laser focused on PA & will be back soon.”
CNN did not mention Fetterman’s long-term prognosis.
Since the near-fatal stroke in May, Fetterman has struggled to process others’ speech. During spoken conversations, he reportedly hears gibberish instead of English.
Last year, Fetterman’s Senate campaign promised the press a “full recovery.”
However, Fetterman’s loved ones have voiced concerns about the campaign’s effect on the long-term recovery of his brain health, according to The New York Times.
The Horn editorial team