Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was recently hospitalized for complications following a surgery to treat prostate cancer, according to a statement from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
Austin received a prostate cancer diagnosis in December 2023 and was admitted to the medical center later that month for a prostatectomy. Then he was readmitted on Jan. 1. The public was not made aware of Austin’s hospitalizations until Jan. 5, and the White House was only notified shortly before Friday’s announcement, per CNN.
Why was Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin first hospitalized?
According to the statement, Austin underwent surgery to treat the cancer on Dec. 22 and was able to return home the next day. However, he began suffering complications following the surgery, including nausea and abdominal pain, and was readmitted to the hospital on Jan. 1 and transferred to the ICU the next day. The statement asserts that Austin remains in the hospital but is making progress and is expected to make a full recovery.
According to CNN, the Pentagon did not inform the White House of Austin’s procedure until he had already been hospitalized for several days. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters Tuesday that President Biden has no plans to remove Austin from office, but noted that the lack of information was not ideal.
“It is not optimal for a situation like this to go as long as it did without the commander in chief knowing about it,” Kirby said.
Rep. Rosendale moves to impeach Secretary Lloyd Austin
Rep. Matt Rosendale, (R, Mont.) has moved to impeach Secretary Austin for unrelated issues but cited the lack of medical transparency in his statement of intent.
“This dishonesty seems to be a repeated pattern for the Secretary as he once again lied to our military and the American people about his health last week,” Rosendale wrote.
Austin released a written statement on Saturday to address the controversy.
“I recognize I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed. I commit to doing better,” Austin wrote. “But this is important to say: this was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decisions about disclosure.”