WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said Saturday he has been released from the rehabilitation center where he received physical therapy for a concussion caused by a fall earlier this month.
The 81-year-old Kentucky Republican said in a statement released by his office that he will be working from home for the next several days. The Senate is scheduled to be in recess during the weeks of April 3 and April 10.
McConnell was dining March 8 after a hotel reception for a campaign committee aligned with him when he tripped and fell. In addition to the concussion, he also had a broken rib.
He was released from the hospital on March 13 and, following his doctor’s advice, transferred to an inpatient rehabilitation center for physical therapy and further recovery.
Concussions can be serious injuries and take time to recover. Even a single concussion incident can limit a person’s abilities during that period.
“I will follow the advice of my physical therapists and spend the next few days working for Kentuckians and the Republican Conference from home,” McConnell said in the statement. “I am in frequent contact with my Senate colleagues and my staff. . I look forward to returning to the Senate in person soon.”
Nearly four years ago, he tripped and fell in his Kentucky home, causing a broken shoulder that required surgery. The Senate had just entered a summer recess and he worked from his house for a few weeks while he recuperated.
In his early childhood he had polio and has recognized some difficulty in climbing stairs as an adult.
McConnell was first elected in 1984. In January, he became the longest-serving Senate leader when the new Congress met, breaking the previous record of 16 years.