Senator John Fetterman (D., Pa.) was discharged from George Washington University hospital on Friday, two days after he was first hospitalized for light-headedness.
“A few minutes ago, Senator John Fetterman was discharged from The George Washington University Hospital,” Fetterman’s office said in a statement. “In addition to the CT, CTA, and MRI tests ruling out a stroke, his EEG test results came back normal, with no evidence of seizures. John is looking forward to spending some time with his family and returning to the Senate on Monday.”
Fetterman’s office previously said he began feeling light-headed toward the end of the Senate Democratic retreat on Wednesday.
“He left and called his staff, who picked him up and drove him to The George Washington University Hospital,” Fetterman’s office said in a statement on Wednesday, adding that the senator is “in good spirits and talking with his staff and family.”
On Thursday, his office said doctors had ruled out the possibility that the senator suffered a new stroke, but said he was still being monitored.
He experienced an ischemic stroke on May 13, 2022, just four days before he went on to win Pennsylvania’s Democratic primary. He later defeated Trump-backed Dr. Mehmet Oz in the general election despite suffering from lingering side effects of the stroke.
Ahead of the election, the major newspaper in Allegheny County, where Fetterman’s adopted hometown of Braddock is situated, endorsed Oz — in part due to Fetterman’s “lack of transparency” over his health.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote at the time: “Mr. Fetterman’s health — he suffered a serious stroke in May — is not the issue. His lack of transparency, however, in refusing to release his medical records is troubling. It suggests an impulse to conceal and a mistrust of the people. All candidates for a major elected office should release their medical records, as did Mr. Oz. If you want privacy, don’t run for public office.”
During the first and only debate between Oz and Fetterman, the Democrat at times seemed confused and struggled to answer some questions, despite relying on closed-captioning for what he has said are lingering auditory-processing issues.
Fetterman and his team have been accused of downplaying the severity of his medical problems. His wife, Gisele Fetterman, referred to the stroke as a “little hiccup” on the same day that Fetterman underwent surgery to have a pacemaker and defibrillator implanted, the Washington Free Beacon reported.