Benjamin Abella, director of the Center for Resuscitation Science at the University of Pennsylvania and a professor in emergency medicine, posted a short video to Twitter on Wednesday about Fetterman’s recovery.
Abella said he has worked as an emergency-room physician for nearly 20 years and that he has taken care of many patients with serious problems, including those who have had strokes.
“I’ve also lived in Pennsylvania, and I’ve followed with sadness the discussion around John Fetterman and his stroke. Let me tell you why,” Abella said in a video where he tagged Fetterman and his press secretary.
Abella pointed out that Fetterman has been open about his health and “he’s recovering from that stroke. He’s recovering very well. He’s speaking, he’s taking interviews, he’s going to rallies and participating in events.”
The emergency-room doctor was wearing scrubs and had a stethoscope around his neck in the video that has been viewed more than 30,000 times.
“Despite all this, Mehmet Oz - a doctor no less - and his surrogates have been shaming John Fetterman, saying he should have listened to his doctors, saying, if he’d eaten a vegetable, this wouldn’t have happened, and saying that the stroke is disqualifying,” Abella said.
In August, an aide to the Oz campaign had said in a statement that if Fetterman “had ever eaten a vegetable in his life, then maybe he wouldn’t have had a major stroke and wouldn’t be in the position of having to lie about it constantly.”
“Who amongst us do not have family members who’ve had strokes, heart attacks, cancer, other medical conditions?” Abella asked. “Do we shame them? What’s wrong with these people?”
“In fact, let me flip the script,” he said. “It is impressive to me that John Fetterman is showing grit and perseverance and working at recovery. In fact, I would say he’s an inspiration.
“Think of members of your family or your friends who have tried hard to battle back from a medical problem. You celebrate them, right? You say, ‘Good for you. Don’t let this beat you.’ That’s what John Fetterman is doing,” Abella said.
“Mehmet Oz is degrading himself and insulting the work he purports to do as a physician by saying that John Fetterman is not able,” he went on. “I say John Fetterman’s stroke and his recovery and his perseverance and his grit are a plus, and that’s why I think he’ll make a fantastic senator.”
Newsweek has asked the Oz and Fetterman campaigns for comment.
Oz, a celebrity heart surgeon who is endorsed by former President Donald Trump, is behind Fetterman in a slew of recent polls as they compete to succeed retiring Republican Senator Pat Toomey in Pennsylvania.
