U.S. Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania is being treated Thursday at a Pittsburgh hospital after falling earlier in the day outside his home in Braddock, according to a spokesman for his office.
The first-term senator and former Pennsylvania lieutenant governor fell while taking a walk and experiencing an episode of ventricular fibrillation, the spokesperson said in a statement released Thursday afternoon on X, formerly known as Twitter. The "flareup" resulted in Fetterman "feeling light-headed, falling to the ground and hitting his face, with minor injuries," according to the statement.
Ventricular fibrillation, or v-fib, is an abnormal heart rhythm that affects the heart's ability to pump blood by making its lower chambers move quickly and randomly, according to the Cleveland Clinic. The hospital describes v-fib as a life-threatening condition requiring immediate medical care.
"Out of an abundance of caution, he was transported" to the unnamed hospital, where doctors examined him and determined what triggered the episode, the statement said. He is "doing well" and will remain there for "routine observation" while doctors "fine-tune" his regimen of medication, according to the statement.
"Senator Fetterman had this to say: 'If you thought my face looked bad before, wait until you see it now!' He is doing well and receiving routine observation at the hospital," the spokesperson added. "Senator Fetterman is grateful for the EMTs, doctors, and nurses who are providing his care."
Fetterman suffered a stroke and was hospitalized during his campaign for Senate in May 2022. At that time, he said the stroke was caused by a clot from his heart during an episode of atrial fibrillation two days earlier. He later underwent surgery to implant a pacemaker with a defibrillator to manage the condition.
Occurring shortly before the 2022 primary election, the stroke created a cloud of uncertainty over the Democratic front-runner's candidacy, but Fetterman went on to win both the primary and later the general election that year.
He was hospitalized again in February 2023 after feeling lightheaded while attending a Senate Democratic retreat. At that time, his office said initial tests at George Washington University Hospital did not show evidence of a new stroke.
There has been little official word about Fetterman's condition since the post, although late Thursday afternoon Fetterman's Republican Senate colleague, Dave McCormick, issued a statement saying, "I reached out to Senator Fetterman and Dina has spoken to Gisele" Fetterman, the Senator's wife.
McCormick, who has made a number of joint appearances with Fetterman in which the two talk up their friendly relationship, did not say he spoke to Fetterman directly. But his statement said, "John is a tough Pittsburgher and is already on the mend. We are thinking of him, Gisele, and their entire family — looking forward to seeing my good friend in the coming days."
Fetterman's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday afternoon. But Fetterman discusses his medical issues in a new book he has been promoting this week, "Unfettered."
He acknowledges in the book — as he has done in the past — that he ignored doctors' longstanding concerns about his heart condition prior to the stroke. And while the book makes clear that Fetterman resented media attention about his health, it makes clear that his campaign played down the seriousness of his condition early on.
In a 17-second video Fetterman released from the hospital after the stroke, his wife Gisele assured worried supporters that the campaign suffered "a little bump" and Fetterman confirmed that "I just wasn't feeling very well. So I decided … to get checked out."
But the book acknowledges that Fetterman's heart had stopped during his treatment, that it took a dozen takes to film the 17 seconds of footage due to his difficulty speaking, and that he avoided using the word "stroke" entirely "because of the image it might create."
The book also candidly discusses Fetterman's mental health struggles after he won his Senate race: It opens with him walking along the riverside path on which he fell Thursday morning, describing it as a place of refuge for him.
In 2023, Fetterman was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and spent six weeks there for treatment for depression. Shortly before he was admitted to Walter Reed, he had reported feeling light-headed, but doctors there said at that time that they'd found no evidence of an additional stroke.
The episode Thursday comes during a week when the already-high-profile senator had been busy with multiple media appearances in which he discussed his book and defended his vote to end the record-setting shutdown of the federal government.
While political figures contacted by WESA said they were unsure of Fetterman's condition, some leaders expressed wishes for his recovery. Gov. Josh Shapiro, for one, posted on social media Thursday evening that he and his family were "praying for Senator Fetterman's full and speedy recovery and thinking of Gisele and their children. ... I know all Pennsylvanians join me in sending well wishes to the Fettermans during this time."
This story is developing.
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