Jean Becker said in a statement Thursday evening that the 88-year-old, who has been hospitalized for longer than a month, is receiving excellent care after a "terrible case of bronchitis which then triggered a series of complications."
Bush, the oldest living former president, has been in intensive care since Sunday. He was admitted to Methodist Hospital in Houston on Nov. 23 for treatment of what his spokesman Jim McGrath described as a "stubborn" cough. He had spent about a week there earlier in November for treatment of the same condition.
Becker, Bush's longtime Houston chief of staff, said "most of the civilized world" contacted her Wednesday after word spread that Bush had been placed in intensive care unit when physicians were having difficulty bringing a fever under control.
"Someday President George H.W. Bush might realize how beloved he is, but of course one of the reasons why he is so beloved is because he has no idea," Becker said in the at-times lighthearted statement that made multiple references to jokes and the former president's sense of humor.
Bush's spokesperson Jim McGrath says he will give an official update on the former president's condition if there is a change.
If you would like to send a get well card to President George H.W. Bush you can send it to:
- George Bush Presidential Library and Museum
Attn: President George Bush
1000 George Bush Drive West
College Station, TX 77845
