A vascular surgeon is raising alarms over Sen. Mitch McConnell's recovery, warning that his staff's claims he's continuing to work on Senate business while in rehab could amount to abuse of an elderly, frail patient.
McConnell, 84, has not been medically cleared to leave his rehabilitation facility more than six weeks after his June 14 hospitalization, but his office claimed Monday he's working hard to return to the Senate and Kentucky "soon" – and Dr. Anahita Dua told The Daily Beast that narrative doesn't add up.
“Rehab for frailty, where you need to learn to walk and stuff again, it takes time to build up strength, is in months," Dua said. "That’s how long it takes. Months of exercises and constant rehab, sometimes up to three hours, four hours of rehab a day.”
“Why are we having this ridiculous expectation of him," the doctor added, "and why is he portraying this ridiculous expectation that he’s gonna get back to it?”
Longtime aide David Popp said the Kentucky Republican is meeting with staff on issues including defense appropriations, foreign policy, the farm bill, and constituent services, while Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Whip John Barrasso, and political contributor Scott Jennings have also said they've spoken with him about policy matters.
"If what they're saying is true, that they're working on Senate-related issues with this patient that is working on his rehab, that is atrocious," Dua said. "If I was his doctor, I would put the kibosh on that right away."
Dua questioned whether McConnell's staff are pressuring him with unrealistic expectations rather than allowing him to rest.
"I hope the staffers are lying, and actually he's getting the opportunity as he deserves, as all patients do, to rest and recuperate without the added stress of running his state as a senator," she said. "It just sounds so ridiculous."
Based on limited public information, Dua said McConnell's stay in a skilled nursing rehab facility could last anywhere from another month to several more, given his age, prolonged hospitalization, and history of falls and frailty. The attending physician's vague statement, she noted, is standard practice absent explicit permission to share more.
