{"id":4715,"date":"2026-07-13T03:56:43","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T22:56:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=4715"},"modified":"2026-07-13T03:56:43","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T22:56:43","slug":"sen-mitch-mcconnell-says-he-was-briefly-unconscious-had-pneumonia-in-latest-health-update","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=4715","title":{"rendered":"Sen. Mitch McConnell says he was &#8220;briefly unconscious,&#8221; had pneumonia in latest health update"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p>Sen. Mitch McConnell released a statement on his health on Sunday along with a photo of himself and his wife, Elaine Chao, after questions swirled about his condition. McConnell said\u00a0he was &#8220;briefly unconscious&#8221; after he took a fall last month and he had been dealing with a &#8220;mild case of pneumonia.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;You all know how folks of my generation often hesitate to share the vulnerability that comes with growing older,&#8221; the senator said, addressing growing questions about his well-being. &#8220;Even in the public eye, I feel that same instinct \u2014 I can&#8217;t help it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"embed embed--type-image is-image embed--float-none embed--size-medium\">\n<p>      <span class=\"img embed__content \"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets3.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/12\/d8b307d9-8cbb-4b5c-95fb-98a3e1060e1a\/thumbnail\/620x574g2\/228b44d067a8dc909b45273bb4f80aa3\/mitchmc.png#\" alt=\"mitchmc.png \" height=\"574\" width=\"620\" class=\" lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets3.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/12\/d8b307d9-8cbb-4b5c-95fb-98a3e1060e1a\/thumbnail\/620x574g2\/228b44d067a8dc909b45273bb4f80aa3\/mitchmc.png 1x\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/span><figcaption class=\"embed__caption-container\">\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__caption\">Sen. Mitch McConnell released an image of himself in the hospital with his wife, Elaine Chao.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__credit\"><\/p>\n<p>                Sen. McConnell&#8217;s Office<\/p>\n<p>                          <\/span><br \/>\n              <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The 84-year-old Kentucky Republican has been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/mitch-mcconnell-hospitalized-spokesperson-says\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">hospitalized since June 14<\/a>, his office said. On the same day, emergency medical personnel responded to an unconscious person at McConnell&#8217;s home, according to\u00a0<span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/mcconnell-home-ems-call-unconscious-cardiac-arrest-hospitalized\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">a public EMS dispatch call<\/a><\/span>\u00a0reviewed by CBS News earlier this month.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;My doctors have confirmed that I didn&#8217;t break any bones or suffer a concussion. I didn&#8217;t have a heart attack or a stroke. I don&#8217;t have any tumors or hemorrhages,&#8221; McConnell said Sunday. &#8220;But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital. While receiving excellent care over the past several weeks, I&#8217;ve also had to deal with a mild case of pneumonia.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>His doctors are trying to figure out what caused the incident, McConnell said, adding he&#8217;s doing everything they ask to speed up his recovery.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In fact, with signs of continued progress, I&#8217;ve been able to move from hospital care to a rehabilitation center where I&#8217;ll keep regaining my strength,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>The Republican said his medical team has not cleared him to return to the Senate floor to vote, but he assured that he has been working with his staff and Senate colleagues. Senate GOP leaders said earlier this week that they <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/mitch-mcconnell-health-gop-senators\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">spoke with McConnell<\/a><\/span> over the phone.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;You&#8217;re right to expect your representatives to work hard for you,&#8221; McConnell&#8217;s statement said. &#8220;And part of my decision to retire at the end of my term this coming January was being honest about the demands of Senate work. But I still have unfinished business to complete on your behalf, and I have every intention of finishing the job you elected me to do.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The office of McConnell&#8217;s attending physician said the senator remained hospitalized to focus on physical therapy and reduce his risk of future falls.<\/p>\n<p>McConnell, a childhood polio survivor, has faced several health scares in recent years. In a May 19\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.appropriations.senate.gov\/hearings\/a-review-of-the-presidents-fiscal-year-2027-budget-request-for-the-army\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">committee hearing<\/a>, he was seen with a bandage around his hand. In February, McConnell\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/mitch-mcconnell-released-from-hospital-flu-like-symptoms\/\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">spent more than a week<\/a>\u00a0in the hospital after he checked himself in for &#8220;flu-like symptoms.&#8221;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In 2023, he was\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/mitch-mcconnell-hospitalized-concussion-fall\/\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">hospitalized with a concussion<\/a>\u00a0after a fall and later\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/mitch-mcconnell-appears-to-freeze-again-exchange-with-reporters\/\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">appeared to freeze<\/a>\u00a0in two separate instances. He suffered\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/mitch-mcconnell-fall-capitol-hill-medical-treatment\/\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">minor injuries<\/a>\u00a0in 2024 after another fall.<\/p>\n<section class=\"content__body--footer\">\n<\/section>\n<p>  <!-- data-recirc-source=\"queryly\" --><\/p>\n<aside class=\"component list recirculation component--type-recirculation  \">\n<p><h3 class=\"component__title\">More from CBS News<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"component__item-recirc-block\">\n<p><h3 class=\"component__title\">Go deeper with The Free Press<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<section class=\"content__body--footer\">\n      <!-- tags --><\/p>\n<section class=\"content__tags\">\n<p class=\"content__tags__label\">In:<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/section><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sen. Mitch McConnell released a statement on his health on Sunday along with a photo of himself and his wife, Elaine Chao, after questions swirled about his condition. McConnell said\u00a0he was &#8220;briefly unconscious&#8221; after he took a fall last month and he had been dealing with a &#8220;mild case of pneumonia.&#8221; &#8220;You all know how&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4716,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2026\/07\/12\/d8b307d9-8cbb-4b5c-95fb-98a3e1060e1a\/thumbnail\/1200x630g2\/c60555f79ce301dc49a580af4a834ac8\/mitchmc.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4715","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-hub"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4715","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4715"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4715\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4716"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4715"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4715"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4715"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}