Fox News anchor John Roberts returned to his live broadcast America Reports after a week off, revealing that he took the time off to tackle his chronic health issues: “For those who didn’t know, I left our program last week and immediately rushed to the hospital. I hadn’t been feeling good for quite some time.”
The former White House journalist said that he had a cardiac operation and was fitted with a pacemaker for his heart. He said that his earlier stent had become obstructed and needed to be reopened:
“It turned out that the stents I got during Trump’s trip to Helsinki with Putin were clogged up again. So they reopened it, but, like former Vice President Mike Pence, the electrical wiring in my heart was failing. As a result, I’m now battery-powered. “I have a pacemaker.”
The reporter said that he was feeling “75 percent” better and hoped to recover “100 percent” shortly. John Roberts also expressed gratitude to his physicians and care team for the diagnoses and treatment he received.
A Look at John Roberts’ cardiac problems
In 2018, John Roberts was diagnosed with two blocked arteries for the first time. Doctors at MedStar Washington Hospital addressed his illness at the time by inserting artificial tubes into his heart to boost blood flow. One of the stents, however, had just been obstructed and needed emergency medical treatment. The newest problem, according to Roberts, was identified when physicians did “a small ultrasound” within his coronary artery.
The television host also said that a routine angiogram would have missed the problem with the obstructed stent. Doctors implanted a pacemaker in Roberts’ heart after fixing the broken stent to monitor his cardiac status and manage his heart rhythm. During an interview with The Washingtonian in 2020, the reporter blamed his heart problems on years of smoking:
“I used to smoke, which is why I have three pieces of stainless steel in my heart.”
A huge shout out to the team at @InovaHealth Fairfax who identified and repaired a blocked stent, and put a pacemaker in a heart that had been ridden hard and put away wet one too many times. Dr. Haddad, Dr. Tehrani, Dr. Batchelor, Dr. Atwater and the whole care team. Thank you!
— John Roberts (@johnrobertsFox) January 29, 2022
However, John Roberts said that he now values healthy food and leads a “healthy lifestyle.” In addition, the reporter said that he is a “sports fanatic” who likes “cycling, tennis, golf, walking, trekking, and skiing.” He apparently enjoys being in “pretty reasonable form” and feels that “”Staying healthy and fit” is important to him “on several levels.”
Highlights from Roberts’ career
John Roberts is a Canadian-American journalist who co-hosts Fox News’ America Reports. He started his career as a broadcaster at the CFOS radio station in Ontario, and he has since worked on various other local radio stations, including CHYM-FM, CJBK, and 1050 CHUM.
In 1979, the Toronto native made his television debut, co-hosting the music newsmagazine The NewMusic on CITY-TV. He rose to prominence as a result of the program and went on to work as an entertainment reporter for CITY-TV. Before taking over the Canadian music channel Much Music in 1984, Roberts worked as a fill-in presenter for Toronto Rocks. In 1987, he quit his position as host of CITY-CityPulse TV’s to become the anchor of CityPulse Tonight.
Between 1989 and 1990, the reporter worked as an anchor for CBS-owned TV station WCIX. He returned to Canada to co-host the CTV morning program Canada AM. Roberts began her career at CBS News in 1992, where she worked at CBS Morning News, CBS This Morning, and The Early Show. He was also an anchor for CBS Saturday Evening News for 11 years before being named chief White House Correspondent in 1999. At CBS, Roberts won three national Emmys and a Gracie Award.
In 2006, the 65-year-old departed CBS to join CNN. He was on the frontlines of the 2006 Lebanon War, for which he got a Headline Award. From 2007 to 2010, Roberts co-hosted CNN’s morning show American Morning and worked as a national reporter for the network. In 2011, John Roberts left CNN to join Fox News. He covered a number of notable events, including Hurricane Irene in 2011, the murder trial of Robert Durst, the Ebola epidemic in the United States, and the 2013 EF5 tornado. He was later named top White House reporter, covering Donald Trump’s presidency from 2017 until 2011. On January 14, 2021, he started co-hosting America Reports.
