NEW YORK Former President Bill Clinton checked into a Manhattan hospital Friday with chest pains and will soon undergo bypass surgery, his office announced.
An angiogram given to Clinton, who had been expected to campaign for Sen. John Kerry in his run for the White House, revealed “significant blockage,” said a Democratic official. It did not appear that Clinton suffered a heart attack, said the official, who had discussed the condition with the former presidents staff and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Clinton, 58, was admitted to New York Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia after undergoing initial testing near his suburban home, his office said. Clintons wife, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, and their daughter, Chelsea, were to be with the president in the city, the statement said.
Clinton canceled a two-day joint trip with his wife across upstate New York.
Sen. Clinton made a brief appearance Friday at the New York State Fair in Syracuse, after which she noted that her husband was hospitalized and would need heart surgery, and apologized for leaving right away. “Hes in excellent hands,” she said.
Dozens of reporters and camera crews were assembled outside the city hospital, which is north of Clintons Harlem office. Hospital officials had no immediate comment.
There was no word on when the surgery would take place. A source speaking on condition of anonymity said the surgery was not likely to take place Friday, but instead at a later date.
In Little Rock, Ark., Clintons mother-in-law, Dorothy Rodham, said Clinton had called her to tell her about the situation.
“He sounded wonderful as usual and very upbeat, as he always is,” she said. “I just told him how much I love him.”
She said she didnt know if he was in the hospital when he called.
Clinton called his step-father, Dick Kelley, at his Hot Springs, Ark., home around 11 a.m. central time, Kelley said.
“Hes very gung-ho and optimistic about whats going to happen. I dont know if he was at the hospital. He just wanted me to know before the press, but the press knew before I did,” Kelley said.
Clinton had a cancerous growth removed from his back shortly after leaving office in early 2001. It turned out to be basal cell carcinoma, the most treatable form of skin cancer. In 1996, he had had a precancerous lesion removed from his nose and a year before that had a benign cyst taken off his chest.
Other than that, Clinton has had the normal health problems that often accompany aging periods of slightly elevated cholesterol and hearing loss and an appetite for junk food. In 1997, he was fitted with hearing aids. He has also suffered from allergies.
On Thursday, Clinton went to Northern Westchester Hospital after suffering “mild chest pain” and shortness of breath, his office said in a statement. He spent the night at his Chappaqua home, but checked into the Manhattan hospital after further tests Friday revealed the medical problem.
“Hes going to be fine,” Kerry told a campaign rally in Newark, Ohio.
“But every single one of us wants to extend to him our best wishes, our prayers and our thoughts and I want you all to let a cheer out and clap that he can hear all the way to New York,” Kerry said to cheers.
In June, a spokesman characterized the ex-president as “doing very well” health-wise. The 42nd president has struggled with a weight problem, but had recently seemed much leaner at public appearances.
During his two terms as president, Clinton was known for his love of fast food. But in January of this year, Clinton said he had gone on “The South Beach Diet” and starting a workout regimen.
Clinton has led an active lifestyle since leaving office. Most recently, he was on the road plugging his memoirs, “My Life.”
Associated Press writers Ron Fournier and Frank Eltman in New York, David Hammer in Little Rock, Ark., and Marc Humbert in Albany, N.Y., contributed to this report.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
