Senator Dianne Feinstein hospitalized with shingles in San Francisco
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said Thursday she was hospitalized in San Francisco with shingles after missing Senate votes this week.
In a statement, Feinstein, 89, said she was diagnosed with shingles while the Senate was on recess late last month.
“I was hospitalized and receiving treatment in San Francisco and hope to make a full recovery,” Feinstein said. “I hope to return to the Senate later this month.”
Asked about her absence amid missed votes this week, her office said Wednesday that she was “dealing with a medical condition” and hoped to “return to Washington soon.”
Feinstein said last month she would retire from Congress at the end of 2024 after serving three decades in the Senate and more than 50 years in public office.
Feinstein, California’s longest-serving senator and senator, was first elected to the Senate in 1992.
The announcement of her departure set up a heated race to replace her, with a handful of candidates already vying to be the Democratic nominee next year.
Feinstein is one of a handful of lawmakers who have been sidelined in recent weeks by medical issues.
Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., recently returned to Washington after undergoing surgery last month for prostate cancer. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, also had surgery to remove tumors from the lining of his gastrointestinal tract; he said in a statement last week that he planned to recover for “several weeks” before returning to Washington.
Sen. John Fetterman’s office said this week that Fetterman, D-Pa., remained hospitalized after checking into Walter Reed National Military Medical Center last month for clinical depression.