Published October 12, 2006
From staff and wire reports
More like this
RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. (AP) - Gerald Ford, the nation's oldest living former president, was in a hospital yesterday and undergoing medical tests, his office said.
Ford, 93, was doing well at Eisenhower Medical Center, spokeswoman Penny Circle said in a statement. She did not disclose the nature of the tests.
The University alum was expected on campus today for the dedication of Weill Hall, the new home of the school that bears his name.
On Wednesday, it was announced that he would not be attending. University spokesman Jared Wadley said Ford does not "feel strong enough."
University officials expected Ford to come as late as 3 p.m. Tuesday, when University President Mary Sue Coleman said that it was "day-to-day" and that she was optimistic.
Today's invitation-only dedication is at 10:30 a.m. this morning. Members of Ford's family are expected to attend.
The former president has been hospitalized repeatedly this year.
He underwent heart procedures in August at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., then returned to his home in Rancho Mirage. He received an implantable cardiac pacemaker to regulate his heartbeat and underwent angioplasty, with stents in two of his coronary arteries to increase blood flow.
In July, Ford was admitted to Colorado's Vail Valley Medical Center for a few days because of shortness of breath. In January, he was hospitalized for 12 days in Rancho Mirage to treat pneumonia.
Five years ago, Ford suffered two small strokes and spent about a week in a hospital.
In September, Coleman said Ford was invigorated by the thought of the new building, which houses the Ford School of Public Policy.
"He's told us that the building's been what's keeping him alive for the last two years," Coleman said.
Ford has watched construction of the new building through a webcam on the School of Public Policy's website.
Ford graduated from the University in 1935, having played center for the football team, been a member of Michigamua, the University's elite senior society, and Delta Kappa Epsilon.
He was House minority leader when President Nixon chose him to replace Spiro Agnew, who resigned, as vice president in 1973. Ford became president on Aug. 9, 1974, when Nixon resigned amid the Watergate scandal.
Karl Stampfl and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
