US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was released from the hospital on Tuesday afternoon after being treated for a bladder issue, the Defense Department said, according to CNN.
He is expected to return to the Pentagon “later this week,” the Department added.
Austin resumed his full duties from home at 5:00 p.m., approximately 48 hours after he had first transferred his responsibilities to his deputy, Kathleen Hicks.
Austin will “recuperate and perform his duties remotely from home for a period before returning to work at the Pentagon later this week,” the Pentagon said in a statement.
Deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said earlier Tuesday that Austin was “in good condition” and that the Pentagon anticipated he would be released from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center later in the day.
On Sunday, the Pentagon announced that the Defense Secretary was hospitalized "for symptoms suggesting an emergent bladder issue." The 70-year-old Austin later was admitted to a critical care ward before undergoing the operation.
Austin’s latest hospitalization comes one month after the Secretary of Defense was hospitalized in order to undergo treatment for cancer.
Austin came under fire for that hospitalization, as the Pentagon kept it not just from the public, but also from the White House – including President Joe Biden himself – and Congress.
In addition, it was reported that, when Hicks began assuming some of Austin’s responsibilities on January 2, not even she knew that it was because Austin was hospitalized.
Some prominent Republicans have called for Austin to be removed from his job in wake of the saga. Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-MT) said he would be introducing articles of impeachment against Austin.