A spokesman for former President George H.W. Bush says doctors have removed Bush’s breathing tube and that he’s breathing well on his own at a Houston hospital.
The tube was inserted Wednesday while the 92-year-old former president was being treated for pneumonia. Family spokesman Jim McGrath says the tube was removed Friday morning at Houston Methodist Hospital.
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He remained in intensive care on Friday, family spokesman Jim McGrath said. No other updates were immediately available, but McGrath said on Thursday that he was hopeful the nation’s 41st president could be discharged from the ICU in a few days.
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McGrath said former first lady Barbara Bush also remained hospitalized on Friday, after spending her second night at the hospital. The 91-year-old checked into the same hospital on Wednesday for treatment of bronchitis. She reported feeling much better on Thursday after receiving medication and rest.
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George H.W. Bush was hospitalized on Saturday and has been in the intensive care unit since Wednesday, relying on a ventilator to breathe. Removing the tube – a procedure known as extubation – would allow Bush to breathe on his own. He was struggling to breathe when he was admitted to the hospital Saturday.
The couple received “an uplifting visit” from longtime friends former Secretary of State James Baker and his wife, Susan, who also live in Houston, McGrath said.
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President-elect Donald Trump and President Barack Obama have sent their well wishes, via Twitter and a news conference, respectively. Former President Bill Clinton also tweeted: “41 and Barbara – thinking about you both and sending wishes for a speedy recovery. Love, 42.”
The Bushes son, former President George W. Bush, offered thanks on Instagram Thursday for messages “of love and support for Mother and Dad.”
“Your prayers are working: 41 and Mom are doing much better today and fighting on,” he said in his first public comments about their illnesses. He and his wife, former first lady Laura Bush, were at Trump’s inauguration on Friday.
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