Sen. Chris Murphy, Democrat of Connecticut, was released from Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, after suffering what his doctor called a “small hemorrhagic stroke” last weekend, his office announced Friday.
Murphy, 53, said in a written statement that he would spend “several weeks in a rehabilitation center” after his release from the hospital.
“Last Saturday afternoon I felt something was wrong with my body and I called 9-1-1 out of an abundance of caution, and I’m glad I did,” Murphy said. “I was diagnosed with a small bleed in the thalamus region of my brain.”
Calling the medical event “a frightening experience for me and my family,” Murphy said he “remains engaged remotely with my team and colleagues” as he works toward his recovery, “and my staff continues to implement our legislative priorities, serve constituents and ensure the work of my office continues without interruption.”
Dr. Jose Suarez, chief of neuroscience critical care at Johns Hopkins, said in a statement provided by the senator’s office that Murphy “has shown tremendous progress, and at the current rate of improvement, we are hopeful that he will make a full recovery following rehabilitation.”
A hemorrhagic stroke occurs when a blood vessel in the brain ruptures and bleeds. Some of the symptoms include headache, dizziness, difficulty understanding or speaking, one-sided weakness, neck stiffness and fainting, according to the Cleveland Clinic. It’s unclear what exactly led to the senator’s stroke.
Murphy’s chief of staff, Allison Herwitt, said in a statement Sunday that the senator suffered a stroke a day earlier when he “began experiencing numbness in his arm while attending his son’s hockey game.”
“He was taken to a local hospital, where it was discovered he had suffered a stroke,” Herwitt said. “He was transferred to Johns Hopkins for further monitoring and is responding well to treatment.” She said the senator was awake and alert and doctors were encouraged by his progress.
Murphy was not up for re-election Tuesday, but he had actively campaigned for his fellow Democrats. He is considered a potential presidential candidate in 2028.
Murphy is the deputy secretary of the Senate Democratic caucus, a role that could change in the new Congress, with his party expected to take the majority early next year. He serves on the Appropriations, Foreign Relations and Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committees, and served in the House from 2007 to 2013 before becoming a senator that year.
Three other Democratic senators have had strokes in recent years, including Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico, Chris Van Hollen of Maryland and John Fetterman of Pennsylvania.
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