The commandant of the Marine Corps, who was hospitalized late last month after suffering a cardiac arrest, has been released from the hospital and is preparing for a procedure to repair a heart condition that doctors say directly contributed to the incident.
Gen. Eric Smith, the top Marine general, is recovering “well ahead of schedule,” according to a press release from the Corps Thursday evening. He was released from inpatient care on Wednesday and is recovering at his home in Washington, D.C., a spokesperson told Military.com.
While Smith, 58, is awaiting a procedure to have a bicuspid aortic valve in his heart repaired, Assistant Commandant Gen. Christopher Mahoney is performing the duties of the commandant. Smith intends to return to duty once he recovers, though a timeline for that return has not been provided by the service.
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“Gen. Mahoney and I see eye to eye on the strategic direction of our Corps, and we are fortunate to be surrounded by a Marine Corps family filled with America’s finest leaders,” Gen. Smith said in the Thursday evening statement. “We continue to focus on finding the right balance between modernizing through Force Design and our day-to-day crisis response mission, while also on taking care of our Marines and Sailors.”
Smith suffered cardiac arrest on Oct. 29. Washington,…
