Donald Norcross may face long road to recovery after gallbladder infection, sepsis

Rep. Donald Norcross (D-Camden) has been in the hospital for over a week now after suffering  a medical emergency last weekend – and he might not be returning to Washington anytime in the near future.

In a new health update today, Norcross’s office clarified what medical issue has been afflicting the congressman – a gallbladder infection that led to sepsis – and stated that he faces an “extended recovery” at Cooper University hospital in Camden.

“Upon his arrival at Cooper, he was diagnosed with a gallbladder infection known as cholangitis that had progressed to sepsis,” Eric Kupersmith, Cooper’s chief physician executive, said today in a statement shared by Norcross’s office. “The Cooper medical team was able to remove the gallstone and is treating the infection and its complications.”

“Congressman Norcross is responding well to treatment, but faces an extended recovery that could require physical rehabilitation,” he continued. “He remains in intensive care.”

Norcross was on a flight to New Jersey from Florida last weekend when he began to feel unwell, and the plane was diverted to North Carolina so that the 66-year-old congressman could be hospitalized. After a brief stay at UNC Rex Hospital, Norcross was transferred to Cooper, where he has stayed in intensive care ever since.

While Norcross’s office has consistently stated that the congressman is on track to make a full recovery, an extended convalescence period, perhaps lasting weeks or months, would be unwelcome news for Democrats in Washington, who are just a couple seats short of a House majority.

Last week, Norcross’s absence (and the deaths of two septuagenarian Democratic congressmen earlier this year) allowed the GOP to pass a controversial budget proposal – one that Norcross called “disgusting” and “draconian” in a statement. The House is currently in the middle of a two-week recess, but some Republicans are now hoping to bring up their flagship tax- and spending-cut legislation for a vote by the end of May, and every Democratic absence will make Republicans’ math for passing the bill that much easier.

Norcross’s hospitalization, though, does not necessarily impede his office’s ability to do its regular work on legislative priorities and constituent services.

“While Congressman Norcross recovers, his offices in New Jersey’s First Congressional District and in Washington, DC remain open and available to constituents,” his office said today. “The Congressman is in regular contact with members of his staff and is monitoring circumstances in the Capitol and in the district. He and his family have been touched by the outpouring of support and well-wishes.”