Sen. John Fetterman’s office released an update on his health Monday, about two weeks after the Pennsylvania Democrat checked himself into a hospital to treat his clinical depression.
Fetterman spokesperson Joe Calvello said the senator “remains on a path to recovery,” though healing “will be a weeks-long process.”
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“John is doing well, working with the wonderful doctors, and remains on a path to recovery,” Calvello said. “He is visiting with staff and family daily, and his staff are keeping him updated on Senate business and news.”
Fetterman’s team is moving “full speed ahead and working tirelessly for the people of Pennsylvania,” including opening new offices across the state, Calvello said.
“We understand the intense interest in John’s status and especially appreciate the flood of well-wishes,” he continued. “However, as we have said this will be a weeks-long process and while we will be sure to keep folks updated as it processes, this is all there is to give by way of an update.”
Fetterman checked himself into the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center earlier this month, and the attending physician of Congress recommended he receive inpatient care. Adam Jentleson, Fetterman’s top aide, said on Feb. 16 that while the senator “has experienced depression off and on throughout his life, it only became severe in recent weeks.”
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Fetterman received widespread support on both sides of the aisle for recognizing he needed medical care for his mental health. The senator belongs to a demographic ― middle-aged white men ― that sees one of the country’s highest rates of suicide and lowest rates of seeking care.
The freshman lawmaker won a tight race last year for Pennsylvania’s Senate seat against TV doctor and Republican candidate Mehmet Oz, who is notorious for medical misinformation, including on treatments for depression.
Last year, Fetterman was hospitalized after experiencing a stroke caused by atrial fibrillation. The stroke resulted in an auditory processing disorder, which the senator’s political opponents used to make ableist attacks against him. He was hospitalized again earlier this year after experiencing lightheadedness, and was discharged after testing ruled out another stroke.
“After what he’s been through in the past year, there’s probably no one who wanted to talk about his own health less than John,” the senator’s wife, Gisele Barreto Fetterman, tweeted at the time he began receiving mental health treatment. “I’m so proud of him for asking for help getting the care he needs.”
