Austin has elective medical procedure, signs over powers to deputy

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin underwent an elective, minimally invasive procedure related to a recent bladder problem on Friday evening.

Austin was hospitalized on Feb. 11 for two days while dealing with an “emergent bladder issue,” his doctors said at the time.

Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said on Friday night, “Tonight, at approximately 6 p.m. ET, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III underwent a successful, elective, and minimally invasive follow-up non-surgical procedure related to his bladder issue at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, which lasted approximately 2.5 hours.

“During that period, Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks assumed the functions and duties of the Secretary of Defense and served as the Acting Secretary of Defense. Secretary Austin subsequently resumed his functions and duties as the Secretary of Defense at 8:25 p.m. ET and has returned home. No changes in his official schedule are anticipated at this time, to include his participation in scheduled Memorial Day events.” 

The Pentagon notified Congress and the White House of Austin’s procedure.

Austin was hospitalized on Jan. 1 due to complications with the treatment he had received on Dec. 22, 2023, for prostate cancer, which he had been diagnosed with earlier that month. The Pentagon did not inform Congress, the White House, or the public for several days while he was in the hospital.

The Defense Department notified the White House on Jan. 4 and the public and Congress on Jan. 5, which is the day he resumed his duties after signing them over to Hicks on Jan. 2.

The handling of his hospitalization prompted both congressional and White House scrutiny, and the Pentagon and the White House have since updated relevant policies.

Austin has since apologized for the secrecy surrounding his hospitalization and diagnosis.

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“I was being treated for prostate cancer,” he said. “The news shook me, and I know that it shakes so many others, especially in the black community. It was a gut punch, and frankly, my first instinct was to keep it private. I don’t think it’s news that I’m a pretty private guy. I never like burdening others with my problems. It’s just not my way. But I’ve learned from this experience.”

He was then hospitalized due to a bladder problem in February. Ryder noted that it was “not related to his cancer diagnosis and has had no effect on his excellent cancer prognosis.”