Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey was released from a hospital in Montgomery on Thursday after undergoing a procedure intended to remove fluid that was pressing against her lung, according to a statement from her office. Ivey, 81, is recovering at the Governor’s Mansion after staying two nights at a hospital in Montgomery, the office said.
The governor plans to continue working from the residence, and her office said she is expected to be back in the Capitol office next week. In a statement carried by her office, spokesperson Gina Maiola described Ivey’s reaction to the news that she was hospitalized and undergoing treatment.
Maiola said: “The governor is also extremely grateful to the people of Alabama for their outpouring of support.” She added, “She is thankful for their prayers and enjoyed their many messages of well-wishes.”
Ivey’s office announced on Tuesday that she was undergoing the procedure. The office said the fluid pressing against her lung was discovered after she visited her doctor because she felt discomfort in her left side and had recently experienced some shortness of breath.
The governor’s office did not disclose a reason for the fluid build-up. The statement also noted that Ivey has previously received radiation treatment for lung cancer, which her office said in 2019 she described as “a small localized spot,” and that in 2020 scans indicated the treatment was successful and she was disease-free.