John Fetterman released from DC hospital after two-night stay

Sen. John Fetterman was released from a Washington, DC, hospital on Friday after a two-night stay related to lightheadedness the Pennsylvania Democrat felt during a party retreat. 

A spokesman for Fetterman said on Friday that the senator did not suffer a stroke or a seizure and will be back at work in the Senate on Monday. 

“Senator Fetterman was discharged from the hospital,” Joe Calvello, the senator’s communications director, said in a statement Friday. 

“In addition to the CT, CTA and MRI tests ruling out a stroke, his EEG test results came back normal, with no evidence of seizures,” Calvello added.

“John is looking forward to returning to the Senate on Monday,” he said. 

The Pennsylvania Democrat suffered a stroke in May 2022, just days before winning the Keystone State’s Senate primary election, that left him with lingering auditory processing issues and trouble speaking.  

On the campaign trail, Republican opponent Dr. Mehmet Oz pressed Fetterman to release his medical records after his health scare, which kept the former mayor of Braddock, Pa., out of the public eye for months in the run-up to the November election. 

According to the New York Times, the 53-year-old sometimes struggles to hear people’s voices clearly — comparing it to the muffled words of Charlie Brown’s teacher in “Peanuts.”

The report added that Fetterman’s difficulties with auditory processing get noticeably worse when he’s stressed or in an unfamiliar situation.

Fetterman relies on unique closed-captioning technology at his desk and on a tablet he carries around the Senate to perform his duties.

If Fetterman becomes unfit to serve, Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro would need to appoint a replacement. Then a special election would be held in 2024 to select a candidate to finish out Fetterman’s term.