Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter will begin receiving palliative care, according to a Carter Center statement released Saturday.
“After a series of brief hospital stays, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter decided today to spend his remaining time at home with his family and receive palliative care in lieu of further medical intervention. He has the full support of his family and medical team,” the statement said.
One of Carter’s grandchildren said he visited his grandparents Friday, a day before it was announced that the former president would enter hospice care. “They are at peace and, as always, their home is filled with love,” tweeted Jason Carter, who is a former Georgia state senator.
“Thank you all for your kind words,” Jason Carter said.
Carter, who turned 98 last year, became the oldest living U.S. president in history after the passing of George H.W. Bush, who died in late 2018 at age 94. The nation’s 39th president has kept a low public profile in recent years due to the coronavirus pandemic, but he has continued to speak out about risks to democracy around the world, one of his longtime causes.
I saw both of my grandparents yesterday. They are at peace and—as always—their home is full of love. Thank you all for your kind words https://t.co/9rhG61sZEV
— Jason Carter (@SenatorCarter) February 18, 2023
Carter beat brain cancer in 2015, but faced a series of health problems in 2019 and consequently underwent surgery to remove pressure on his brain. His health problems forced him to give up his decades-long tradition of teaching Sunday school at Maranatha Baptist Church in his hometown of Plains, Georgia.
A peanut farmer and U.S. Navy lieutenant before turning to politics, Carter, a Democrat, eventually served one term as governor of Georgia and was president of the United States from 1977 to 1981.
The former president is widely revered for his advocacy of human rights. His brokering of the 1978 Camp David Accords with Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin remains central to his legacy.
In his post-presidency years, Carter founded The Carter Center with his wife, Rosalynn, in hopes of promoting world peace and health. The center has worked to promote democracy by monitoring elections abroad and reducing disease in developing countries over the years.
Carter himself has been a longtime volunteer with Habitat for Humanity.
He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his efforts to advance peace around the world.
Joe Biden in close contact with the Carter Family
President Joe Biden was briefed on former President Jimmy Carter’s declining health and his decision to seek palliative care, an official told CNN, and he remains in close contact with the Carter family and his close circle of advisers.
The Biden’s traveled to Georgia to visit the Carter’s in 2021, on the 100th day of Biden’s presidency, and have long been admirers of Carter.