Fetterman hospitalized to treat clinical depression

Sen. John Fetterman checked himself into the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Wednesday night to receive inpatient care for clinical depression, his chief of staff Adam Jentleson said Thursday.

The first-term Democratic senator has experienced depression throughout his life, but "it only became severe in recent weeks," Jentleson said in a statement.

"After examining John, the doctors at Walter Reed told us that John is getting the care he needs, and will soon be back to himself."

Fetterman is receiving care on a voluntary basis and went to the hospital after evaluation from Brian Monahan, attending physician of the U.S. Congress, according to the statement.

While it's the Pennsylvania senator's first public admission to mental health treatment, his other health challenges became a frequent subject during his campaign. He suffered a significant stroke during his bid for the Senate, which forced him off the campaign trail for several months and affected his auditory processing.

More recently, Fetterman spent several nights in the hospital for what his office described as lightheadedness. Testing during that episode showed no evidence of any new stroke or seizure, his office said later.

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), the chamber’s No. 2 Democrat, commended Fetterman for seeking help and expressed confidence that, with care, he’d be able to continue serving his term.

“This is an unimaginable challenge that he's faced in life. He deserves the very best and professional care and I'm sure he'll get it,” Durbin said. “There isn't a single family that isn’t touched by [mental illness] and those that are touched by it and succeed, really are very honest about it. I'm glad John has done that.”

The Democrat's wife tweeted about his mental health struggles shortly after his office's statement, saying, "After what he’s been through in the past year, there’s probably no one who wanted to talk about his own health less than John. I’m so proud of him for asking for help and getting the care he needs."

Fetterman was out during a Thursday morning Senate Agriculture Committee hearing on nutrition programs, a notable absence since he's chairing the nutrition subcommittee.

He also missed votes on Thursday. The Senate is now on a recess until Feb. 27; it's unclear if Fetterman will return to the Capitol then.

Pennsylvania's other Democratic senator, Bob Casey, underwent surgery for prostate cancer this week. His spokesperson Mairéad Lynn said the "procedure went well" and Casey will return to the Senate "after a period of rest and recovery." Democrats have a 51-49 Senate majority, giving the party more breathing room on absences than last Congress's evenly split chamber.

Meredith Lee Hill contributed to this report.