Mitch McConnell Suffered Previously Undisclosed Falls Prior to Freezing Incident on Camera: Report

CNN reports that the Republican Senate leader has fallen at least three times this year, with the network's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta saying "he needs to get checked out"

One day after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stopped speaking mid-sentence during a press conference, a new report claims the Kentucky Republican has taken at least three falls in recent months.

CNN reports that McConnell, 81, fell in February in Finland, during a trip with a U.S. delegation to meet with the Finnish president in Helsinki. According to the outlet, McConnell tripped on a snowy day while exiting a car, but brushed himself off and kept walking.

GOP Sen. Ted Budd confirmed the incident to CNN, noting that it was an icy day but adding, "All of us are concerned."

Another fall has been previously confirmed by McConnell's team, and took place in March, during an event at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in Washington, D.C.

After that incident, McConnell spent nearly five days at a hospital, with a spokesperson saying at the time that his medical team discovered that the senator had suffered a minor rib fracture during the fall, along with a concussion that caused him to remain in the hospital "for a few days of observation and treatment."

And according to CNN, McConnell also tripped and fell recently, in July, while he was getting off a plane at Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C., but returned to the Capitol to resume work the same day.

Related: Mitch McConnell Says He's 'Fine' After Freezing Mid-Press Conference, Being Ushered Away

The news about the previously unreported falls comes one day after McConnell raised concerns when he suddenly stopped speaking during his daily press conference with reporters. Nearly 30 seconds later, as he stood staring forward without speaking, his colleagues surrounded him, asking if he wanted to go back to his office. At that point, McConnell turned away from the podium and stood nearby while his colleagues took the microphone.

Eventually, McConnell returned to the microphone, where he answered questions about what had just occurred.

"Could you address what happened here at the start of the press conference and was it related to your injury from earlier this year where you suffered a concussion?" one reporter asked — a reference to the Republican's March incident.

"I'm fine," Sen. McConnell responded.

When the reporter then asked, "You're fine? You're fully able to do your job?" McConnell responded: "Yeah."

Related: Mitch McConnell Discharged from Hospital After Minor Rib Fracture, Concussion from Fall

Later in the day, McConnell spoke to reporters inside the Capitol, telling them President Joe Biden had called to check in and joking, "So, the president called to check on me. I told him I got sandbagged.”

The quip was a reference to a recent fall Biden himself took, when he tripped over a sandbag on stage, shortly after delivering a commencement address at the United States Air Force Academy.

Speaking to Wolf Blitzer on Wednesday, CNN's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta weighed in on what he called "a neurological event" that occurred during the press briefing, saying, "It was definitely concerning to watch. I mean, I think his doctors will be looking at that tape and sort of, you know, trying to figure out what happened there. He needs to get checked out, I think that’s really the bottom line.”

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In November, McConnell defeated Florida Sen. Rick Scott in the GOP's leadership election, making him the caucus's longest-serving leader since 2007.

McConnell's current term is slated to end in 2027.

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