Former President George H.W. Bush, 91, the oldest living former president, remained hospitalized Thursday morning after falling in his Kennebunkport home and breaking a bone in his neck, according to a Bush family spokesman.
“President Bush remains hospitalized at Maine Medical Center. We will send updates as they become available,” spokesman Jim McGrath said in a tweet Thursday morning.
Maine Medical Center confirmed Thursday morning he was in fair condition.
McGrath said Bush fell at his home Wednesday and broke a bone in his neck.
“His condition is stable, he is fine, but he’ll be in a neck brace,” McGrath said Wednesday night.
Jenna Bush Hagar, Bush’s granddaughter and daughter of President George W. Bush, posted a message about her grandfather Thursday morning.
Always touched by kindness: thanks for all of your thoughts+prayers for our dear Gamps. We are optimistic that he will heal well.
— Jenna Bush Hager (@JennaBushHager) July 16, 2015
The Bush family lives in Kennebunkport during the summer.
Bush was being treated at Portland’s Maine Medical Center, where a children’s hospital is named for his wife.
Bush revealed several years ago that he has a form of Parkinson’s disease. He uses a motorized scooter or wheelchair to get around. Recently, he has had other health setbacks, including a stay at a Houston hospital for about a week in December for shortness of breath.
He spent Christmas 2012 in intensive care at the same Houston hospital while being treated for a bronchitis-related cough and other issues. He was discharged in January 2013 after nearly two months.
Bush and his wife, Barbara, live in Houston during the winter.
A Republican, Bush was president from 1989 to 1993. He was vice president from 1981 to 1989 under President Ronald Reagan. He is the oldest living former president and vice president.
He has skydived on at least three of his birthdays since leaving the White House. He celebrated his 90th birthday by making a tandem parachute jump near his Kennebunkport home.
Shot down and rescued, parachuted and landed safely, @GeorgeHWBush yesterday takes a fall. May he be victorious again, I pray.
— Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) July 16, 2015
He celebrated a low-key 91st birthday with his family at the home on the Maine coast.
Bush was a naval aviator in World War II and was shot down over the Pacific. He also was a former U.S. ambassador to China and a CIA director.
He is the father of Republican former President George W. Bush and another Bush son, former Republican Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, is running for president in 2016.
The children’s hospital at Maine Medical Center is named after Bush’s wife. The Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital offers everything from well child visits to specialized medical and surgical treatment of complex illnesses and injuries.
This story contains material from The Associated Press.
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