Jair Bolsonaro’s condition improved enough that he moved out of intensive care at a hospital in Brasilia, his wife said Monday, marking a change in his treatment level after pneumonia drove his hospitalization. Michelle Bolsonaro said on Instagram that tests taken after he was placed in the intensive care unit on Friday showed inflammation had decreased over the prior 24 hours.
She said Bolsonaro, 70, was transferred to a semi-intensive care unit as his condition improved. The update came after hospital DF Star said Sunday that Bolsonaro’s kidney function had improved, though it said he should remain in intensive care because of pneumonia. The hospital did not mention the transfer in its Sunday communication, according to the report.
Bolsonaro is serving a 27-year sentence in Brazil’s prison system after being convicted in connection with a 2023 coup attempt. The report said he was taken to the Brasilia hospital on Friday from the prison where he is serving his sentence.
The former president’s detention has been the subject of repeated legal efforts by his family and allies, who have asked Brazil’s Supreme Court to allow him to carry out his sentence under house arrest. The report also noted that Bolsonaro had been transferred earlier from federal police headquarters to a larger cell in January.
The hospitalization is part of a pattern of medical episodes while Bolsonaro has been in custody. The report said he has been hospitalized multiple times since he was stabbed at a campaign event before the 2018 presidential election.
Looking ahead, the report said Bolsonaro’s son Flávio Bolsonaro, a senator, is expected to run for president later this year against incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Bolsonaro has also denied wrongdoing related to his convictions, which the report said include charges involving leading an armed criminal organization and attempting the violent abolition of Brazil’s democratic rule of law.