Several key Congressmembers have been out of commission with health issues. But no one saw this one coming.
Because a major Democrat was just diagnosed with a life-threatening disease.
Over the past few months, we’ve seen a number of high-profile Congress members head in and out of the hospital for varying health reasons.
Freshman U.S. Senator John Fetterman was checked into a hospital after dealing with the effects of his severe stroke in 2022.
The 89-years old Senate Democrat Dianne Feinstein was hospitalized with an infection in February and spent some weeks away from her work.
And the Senate Republican Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell, was hospitalized after he fell and got a concussion and a rib fracture.
In good news, all of those individuals have recovered and continue to do so.
But a major Democrat in Congress received a disease diagnosis that, unfortunately, she won’t be able to recover from.
U.S. House Representative Jennifer Wexton (D-VA), recently announced online that she has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
“If there’s one thing that Democrats and Republicans can agree on, it’s that Parkinson’s disease sucks. Today, on World Parkinson’s Day, I’m here to tell you that I’ve come to learn this firsthand. And that’s because I’ve learned that I, too, have Parkinson’s, or what some people call PD for short,” Wexton said in the video she shared on Twitter.
She then said that she intends to continue in her role as the House Representative for Virginia despite her diagnosis.
“But I want you to know this: my head and my heart are 100% committed to serving the people of Virginia, and especially my constituents in the 10th Congressional District,” Wexton added.
On #WorldParkinsonsDay, I'm here to share that I've been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease.
I'm doing well, and I want to bring about as much good from this diagnosis as I can—including here in Congress. pic.twitter.com/bvEwzZQbqp
— Rep. Jennifer Wexton (@RepWexton) April 11, 2023
Wexton originally took office in 2019 but over the past several months, her disease has started to take its toll with her speech becoming slurred and faster. She also says that her overall balance has been impacted by Parkinson’s.
She did note that PD is untreatable but that it isn’t a “death sentence.” She said others are “welcome to empathize,” but that she doesn’t want anyone to feel sorry for her.
“What Parkinson’s is not is an untreatable disease, a cognitive impairment, or a death sentence. So please, you are welcome to empathize, but don’t feel sorry for me,” she said.
She again noted that she intends to fulfill her role as normal, as best she can with the physical treatment that she will get from her medical team.
It’s noteworthy that in 2019, the Democrat from New York, Jose Serrano, announced that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s and that he would be stepping down as a result of his diagnosis.
“I’ve come to the realization that Parkinson’s will eventually take a toll and that I cannot predict its rate of advancement,” Serrano said in a statement shared with the media at the time.
Though, putting all politics aside, hopefully, Wexton is able to continue living her life the way she wants to without PD getting in the way of that.
Stay tuned to the Federalist Wire.
