Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) was hospitalized in the afternoon on Aug. 8 after stumbling and falling in her hometown of San Francisco.
A spokesperson from Ms. Feinstein’s office told The Epoch Times that the California lawmaker returned home shortly after with no serious injuries.
The spokesperson said in their statement from the lawmaker’s office, “Senator Feinstein briefly went to the hospital yesterday afternoon as a precaution after a minor fall in her home. All of her scans were clear, and she returned home.”
The 90-year-old senator has suffered several health struggles, including being hospitalized in early March of this year for a case of shingles. She was expected to return to her position in the upper chamber of Congress later that month but was unable to do so.
Ms. Feinstein, who is the oldest member of Congress, eventually returned to Washington in mid-May of this year after more than two months away recovering from her condition.
The California Democrat appeared thinner and frail and was using a wheelchair to make her way through the Capitol, still reportedly recovering from her bout with shingles upon her return.
Ms. Feinstein’s return to the Senate after a 10-week absence provides Democrats with a greater cushion as they navigate their slim 51–49 majority.
During her absence, Ms. Feinstein asked to be temporarily replaced on the Senate Judiciary Committee. She asserted that complications had delayed her recovery, and since, at the time, she could offer no return date, she wanted to allow the committee to replace her. Republicans rejected the request, saying Democrats were looking to make a move to push through President Joe Biden’s nominees.
Ms. Feinstein had already been showing signs of growing frailty in recent years, and she had on occasion given the impression of being confused or bewildered when speaking to reporters in the Capitol. The illness came after this development.
The veteran senator has steadily withdrawn from a number of prominent positions over the past few years. After receiving backlash from liberals over her handling of Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation, she announced in 2020 that she would not return to her position as the leading Democrat on the judiciary panel.
Ms. Feinstein had the opportunity to be the Senate president pro tempore or the most senior member of the majority party in the Senate, but she declined earlier this year. The president pro tempore is responsible for ceremonial obligations such as opening the Senate each day.
During her more than 30-year tenure in the Senate, Ms. Feinstein was the first woman to chair the Senate Intelligence Committee and to serve as the senior Democrat on the Judiciary Committee.
