Michael Caputo, the top spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services, has voluntarily taken a 60-day leave of absence in order to “focus on his health and well-being of his family,” the department said in a statement. The loyal Trump supporter’s break comes after he posted a bizarre and false Facebook rant claiming that “deep state” scientists wanted America to be sick, accusing the CDC of “sedition,” and warning—without evidence—that the left is gearing up for a post-election armed revolt. He apologized for the rant on Tuesday.

In a statement on Thursday, Caputo said he’d left a lymphatic issue untreated which “was a mistake, and contributed to my stress level, along with the increasing number of violent threats leveled at me and my family.” He thanked Dr. Fauci for helping him to get “the healthcare I long needed, and yet neglected, during the pandemic.” A senior policy adviser to Caputo, Dr. Paul Alexander, who had tried to muzzle some of Fauci’s public statements, will also leave the department.