Tauchen hospitalized with heart, ankle injuries

By: 
Luke Reimer
Reporter

Wisconsin Rep. Gary Tauchen, R-Bonduel, was recently hospitalized in intensive care.

Tauchen was walking down the street in Madison on Oct. 5 when he felt a shock from his defibrillator, making him fall.

“I had heart surgery last year,” said Tauchen. “The electrical connection went wacky.”

He said that when the incident happened and arterial fibrillation occurred, he could feel a second shock.

When Tauchen fell, he also suffered a broken ankle.

“I have two problems right now,” said Tauchen.

Tauchen was able to call 911 and he said that the ambulance got to him within five minutes to bring him to the hospital.

Tauchen anticipates to be out of the hospital by the end of the week, where he hopes to start rehab for his broken ankle.

“The problem is that most of the rehab centers are full,” said Tauchen.

He does not anticipate his injuries to affect his work, as he said when he had heart surgery last year, he was able to participate in Zoom calls and meetings.