Rep. Tom Kean Jr. returns to Congress after four-month absence, cites depression treatment

When Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-N.J.) disclosed that his monthslong disappearance from the House was due to depression, he opened a delicate but difficult conversation: How much information about their personal health are politicians expected to share? After vanishing from public life for more than 100 days and offering almost no details, Kean returned...

The New Jersey Republican has explained the reason for his long absence: depression. Now he must convince voters that he deserves another term.

Republican Rep. Tom Kean of New Jersey returned to Congress on Tuesday after being absent without explanation for nearly four months. Kean took to the House floor and revealed a depression diagnosis. CBS News congressional correspondent Nikole Killion has the latest.

Representative Thomas Kean Jr., a New Jersey Republican, has finally reappeared in Congress. Questions remain about his nearly four-month absence from public life, which he said was due to depression.

New Jersey Republican Rep. Tom Kean was back on Capitol Hill Tuesday, where he announced his four-month, previously unexplained absence from Congress was due to depression. CBS News congressional correspondent Nikole Killion reports.

Depression, the New Jersey congressman said, “is physical, it is emotional, and until you experience it yourself, it is difficult to fully understand how powerful this illness can be.”

On Tuesday, US Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ) returned to Congress after a four-month previously unexplained absence, during which he received his full salary despite missing over 100 votes.  He revealed on the House floor that he sought treatment for depression. “I am grateful that I accepted help because today I stand before you healthier, […]

On Tuesday, US Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (D-NJ) returned to Congress after a four-month previously unexplained absence, during which he received his full salary despite missing over 100 votes.  He revealed on the House floor that he sought treatment for depression. “I am grateful that I accepted help because today I stand before you healthier, […]

(MedPage Today) -- New Jersey Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. disclosed Tuesday that he was being treated for depression during his unexplained 4-month absence from the House, suggesting in a brief floor speech that he remained silent about his condition...

Rep. Tom Kean, a Republican from New Jersey, returned to Capitol Hill Tuesday and said he was diagnosed with depression, which resulted in a long hospital stay. Kean last voted on March 5. CBS News' Shanelle Kaul reports.

Republican returns to US House after months of absence over ‘depression’  The GuardianMissing congressman Tom Kean explains mysterious four-month absence  BBCDemocrats are sympathetic to Tom Kean’s mental health plight — but they still want him out of the House  The IndependentTom Kean Jr., absent for months, to hold fundraiser on the day of his return  PoliticoRepresentative Tom Kean, Missing for Months, Is Back Home in New Jersey  The New York Times

New Jersey Republican Tom Kean Jr, told fellow lawmakers that depression was the reason he had been away since March.

Tom Kean Jr, who last voted in March, says he entered hospital months ago and was diagnosed with depressionTom Kean Jr, a Republican congressman who disappeared from the Capitol for nearly four months with little explanation, re-emerged on Tuesday and said that he was absent while dealing with depression.“Several months ago, due to health concerns, I entered the hospital for some testing. I did not believe that this would result in a long-term stay. I was given the diagnosis of depression,” Kean said in a speech on the floor of the House Tuesday morning. Continue reading...

“As the over 48 million of my fellow Americans being treated for this illness have come to discover there is no timeline for healing," Kean said.

The New Jersey congressman revealed that he had been diagnosed with depression and spent an extended period in the hospital receiving treatment.

Republican Representative Thomas Kean Jr. is back at work, and finally explained Tuesday why he went missing in March without any explanation. In a speech on the House floor, Kean said that he was hospitalized on doctor’s orders for depression. He noted that it was a “difficult speech” for him to make as he is a private person and talking about himself doesn’t come naturally, but said that “I believe I owe an explanation to the people of New Jersey’s 7th district, my colleagues in this chamber, and to the American people for my actions.” Kean said months ago, he underwent medical testing at a hospital and was diagnosed with depression. He didn’t believe he would need a long-term hospital stay, but was advised to remain by doctors, and early on, he didn’t understand his condition. Rep. Tom Kean says his absence from the House was due to depression pic.twitter.com/AbQRdc4d88— Acyn (@Acyn) June 30, 2026“It is physical. It is emotional. And until you experience it yourself, it is difficult to fully understand how powerful this illness can be,” Kean said. He said he was hesitant to accept his doctors’ advice that a long-term hospital stay would be the fastest way to recovery, given his obligations and responsibilities to his family, colleagues, and constituents. “But, as the over 48 million of my fellow Americans being treated for this illness have come to discover, there is no timeline for healing. There is no timeline for recovery. Only the work of getting better, one day at a time,” Kean said. It was a heartfelt speech, but the New Jersey congressman failed to explain why his social media accounts continued to post regularly and his office still introduced legislation while he was missing. Kean’s financial disclosures showed that he was also trading stocks in April while he was ostensibly in the hospital, and his reelection campaign racked up travel expenses showing him using Uber and Amtrak in San Francisco, far from his constituents, in that same month. If Kean’s depression was so severe that he needed hospitalization, how does he explain personally trading stocks and racking up travel expenses on the other side of the country? He missed several important votes in Congress, including on the budget. He’s not in a safe Republican district, either: Donald Trump carried it by just one percentage point in 2024 and Democratic Governor Mikie Sherrill won it by two last November. Kean is not the first member of Congress to deal with depression: Former Representative Jesse Jackson Jr. was treated at the Mayo Clinic for bipolar depression in 2012 and later resigned that year, and former Representative Patrick Kennedy dealt with depression during his congressional career, receiving in-patient treatment in 2006 and 2009 and deciding not to run for reelection in 2010. While Kean won his primary unopposed, he faces Democrat and former Navy helicopter pilot Rebecca Bennett in November’s  general election, and may not be able to escape scrutiny over how much he is telling the truth about the last few months. 

Rep. Tom Kean Jr. revealed on the House floor on Tuesday his diagnosis for depression led to extended hospital treatment. The post Tom Kean Reveals Depression Treatment After Four-Month Absence from Congress appeared first on Breitbart.

The New Jersey Republican was missing for months with no explanation for his constituents. He explained in a House floor speech that after his diagnosis, there was no timeline for recovery.

Kean said Tuesday that a hospital visit months ago led to him being diagnosed with depression and, under doctors' recommendations, remained at the hospital for treatment.

Rep. Tom Kean Jr. said he was diagnosed with depression this year and doctors recommended inpatient treatment that kept him from his job in Washington.

Kean, who last voted in March, earlier said he was addressing a “personal medical issue.”

New Jersey Rep. Tom Kean said he was diagnosed with depression, explaining a months-long absence from Congress in a competitive district in the midterm elections.

WASHINGTON — Rep. Tom Kean, R-N

After months of mystery, the New Jersey representative broke his silence about the undisclosed health issue that prompted his 117-day absence.

Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. of New Jersey arrived back on Capitol Hill on Tuesday after a nearly four-month absence.

Tom Kean Jr. says months‑long absence was due to depression as he returns June 30 amid high political stakes.

After a monthslong absence for medical reasons, Rep. Tom Kean, a Republican from New Jersey, returned to Congress on Tuesday, June 30, and said he had been receiving treatment for depression. Watch his full remarks on the House floor.

New Jersey Representative Tom Kean Jr. revealed that he has been treated for depression as he returned to the US House for the first time in nearly four months.