(NEXSTAR) – Former President Bill Clinton was hospitalized in Southern California for a non-COVID related issue, spokesman Angel Ureña said in a statement Thursday.
Clinton is dealing with an infection but is “on the mend” and “in good spirits” according to Ureña.
He is currently undergoing treatment at the University of California Irvine Medical Center.
Ureña added that Clinton “is incredibly thankful to the doctors, nurses, and staff providing him with excellent care.”
The 42nd president’s spokesman added the following joint statement from the medical center:
President Clinton was taken to UC Irvine Medical Center and diagnosed with an infection. He was admitted to the hospital for close monitoring and administered IV antibiotics and fluids. He remains at the hospital for continuous monitoring. After two days of treatment, his white blood cell count is trending down and he is responding to antibiotics well. The California-based medical team has been in constant communication with the President’s New York-based medical team, including his cardiologist. We hope to have him go home soon.
Dr. Alpesh Amin and Dr. Lisa Bardack
In the years since Clinton left the White House in 2001, the former president has faced health scares. In 2004, he underwent quadruple bypass surgery after experiencing prolonged chest pains and shortness of breath. He returned to the hospital for surgery for a partially collapsed lung in 2005, and in 2010 had a pair of stents implanted in a coronary artery.
He responded by embracing a largely vegan diet that saw him lose weight and report improved health.
He repeatedly returned to the stump, campaigning for Democratic candidates, mostly notably his wife, Hillary, during her failed 2008 bid for the presidential nomination. And in 2016, as his wife sought the White House as the Democratic nominee, Clinton — by then a grandfather and nearing 70 — returned to the campaign trail.
The UCI Medical Center is in Orange County, about 40 miles (64 km) southeast of Los Angeles. It wasn’t immediately clear why Clinton was in Southern California.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.