George H.W. Bush goes home after almost two months in hospital

George H.W. Bush, the nation’s oldest former president, was released on Monday from a Texas hospital after nearly two months of treatment, his spokesman announced.

Bush, 88, was released from Methodist Hospital in Houston after being treated for bronchitis, a bacterial infection and a persistent cough, spokesman Jim McGrath said in a statement emailed to reporters. Over the weekend, the family said that Bush would be released shortly after receiving final clearance from doctors.

“Mr. Bush has improved to the point that he will not need any special medication when he goes home, but he will continue physical therapy,” according to Dr. Amy Mynderse, the internal medicine physician in charge of the former president’s care.

In the statement, Bush praised his care.

“I am deeply grateful for the wonderful doctors and nurses at Methodist who took such good care of me,” he said. “Let me add just how touched we were by the many get-well messages we received from our friends and fellow Americans. Your prayers and good wishes helped more than you know, and as I head home my only concern is that I will not be able to thank each of you for your kind words.”

Bush and his wife, Barbara, spend winters in Texas and summers at the family’s home in Kennebunkport, Maine.

Bush, the father of former President George W. Bush and of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, had been hospitalized since Nov. 23. He was originally admitted for a persistent cough.

He had been in the hospital about a month when his office disclosed in December that he had been moved into an intensive care unit because he had developed a fever that physicians were having trouble controlling.

On Dec. 29, Bush’s office announced that he had improved and he was returned to a hospital room. Since then, he has continued to get better and has been undergoing physical therapy to rebuild his strength.

Bush was the nation’s 41st president and served one term before losing the 1992 election to Bill Clinton.

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