Ailing Mitch McConnell, 83, Hospitalized
The former Senate majority leader missed Senate votes on Monday and Tuesday.
Tom Williams/Tom Williams/Getty Images
Mitch McConnell has been hospitalized after experiencing what his office described as “flu-like symptoms.”
The 83-year-old Kentucky senator checked himself into a hospital on Monday evening “in an abundance of caution,” his office told the Daily Beast in a statement.
“His prognosis is positive and he is grateful for the excellent care he is receiving,” his spokesman, David Popp, added. “He is in regular contact with his staff and looks forward to returning to Senate business.”
In February and March last year, McConnell wore a medical boot and used a wheelchair to get around after falling down a small flight of stairs in the Capitol and taking a second tumble later that day.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
The former Senate majority leader missed crucial Senate votes on Monday and Tuesday, Politico reported.
McConnell, the Senate’s third-oldest member, has had a string of health scares in recent years, including falling to the ground in the Capitol in October 2025 and suddenly freezing during multiple press conferences in 2023.
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The octogenarian, who was first elected to the Senate over 41 years ago—in 1984—stepped down as Senate Republican leader last year. He plans to retire from Congress when his current term concludes in January 2027.
Sen. Mitch McConnell fell in the Russell basement, while being questioned my members of The Sunrise Movement, who took this video. pic.twitter.com/BeGNEE5SgP
— Erik Rosales (@ErikRosalesNews) October 16, 2025
In February and March last year, McConnell wore a medical boot and used a wheelchair to get around after falling down a small flight of stairs in the Capitol and taking a second tumble later that day.
“Senator McConnell is fine,” Popp said at the time. “The lingering effects of polio in his left leg will not disrupt his regular schedule of work.” McConnell contracted polio at the age of two, leaving a portion of his left leg paralyzed, according to BBC.
McConnell, who is four years older than President Donald Trump, sustained a cut to the face and sprained his wrist after taking a fall at the Capitol in December 2024.
In 2023, the GOP stalwart was hospitalized for a concussion after falling at a Washington, D.C., hotel.
The same year, he infamously froze twice while speaking with reporters—first in the Capitol, and again in his native Kentucky as he was answering a question about running for re-election in 2026.
Like President Donald Trump—who is four years younger than McConnell—the Kentucky senator has in the past appeared in public with bruising on his hands.
Stefani Reynolds/Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images
McConnell’s aides later attributed the episodes to lightheadedness.
McConnell faced speculation about his health after severe bruising appeared on his right hand in October 2020. When asked if he had any health issues people should know about, he replied, “Of course not,” CNN reported.
The only senators older than McConnell are Senator Bernie Sanders, 84, and Chuck Grassley, who is 92.
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