Al Roker, an anchor and weatherman for the morning show “Today,” was taken back to the hospital last week, just a day after he had been released.
Following initial reporting from Page Six, Roker’s co-host Hoda Kotb confirmed Thursday that he was readmitted “due to some complications” following treatment for blood clots.
Kotb addressed his absence from both the NBC program and the annual Christmas tree lighting at New York City’s Rockefeller Center on Wednesday, assuring viewers that Roker was in “very good care.”
“He’s resting, and his doctors are keeping a close eye on him. Al and his family want everybody to know how grateful they are for all the love, the support and the well wishes,” she said.
Kotb also shared that she and co-host Craig Melvin were able to FaceTime the weatherman from the tree lighting ceremony, adding that “he gave us a big thumbs-up.”
On Nov. 18, the 68-year-old revealed on Instagram that he had been admitted to the hospital a week earlier “with a blood clot in my leg which sent some clots into my lungs.”
“After some medical whack-a-mole, I am so fortunate to be getting terrific medical care and on the way to recovery. Thanks for all the well wishes and prayers and hope to see you soon,” he wrote at the time.
The hospitalization caused him to miss the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade for the first time in more than a quarter century, leaving a massive void for many dedicated viewers.
On Nov. 24, Roker shared on social media that he was at home watching the event on TV after being discharged, adding that he missed co-hosting alongside Savannah Guthrie and Kotb.
“For the past 27 parades, at this moment … we would [typically] turn to Al Roker, who’s our ‘Today’ show colleague and our best pal,” Kotb said during the parade. ”But as a lot of you have heard, Al’s recovering and he’s recovering very well from a recent medical issue.”
Roker’s wife, ABC News correspondent Deborah Roberts, also used the holiday to express her love for the weatherman, saying in an Instagram post that she was grateful “for all the support and well wishes from every corner.”
However, Page Six reported Wednesday that the beloved TV personality was rushed back to the hospital by ambulance the day after Thanksgiving.
In 2020, Roker revealed that he had cancer and would be receiving surgery to remove his prostate.
The “Today” co-host called it a “good news-bad news” diagnosis at the time, saying that the disease was detected early but that it was also “a little aggressive.”
It’s unknown when Roker will be released again from the hospital.
