Former First Lady Barbara Bush in Failing Health

Former first lady Barbara Bush is in “failing health” and the 92-year-old will not pursue further medical treatment, the office of George H.W. Bush said Sunday in a statement.

“Following a recent series of hospitalizations, and after consulting her family and doctors, Mrs. Bush, now age 92, has decided not to seek additional medical treatment and will instead focus on comfort care,” reads the statement, published by NBC News. “It will not surprise those who know her that Barbara Bush has been a rock in the face of her failing health, worrying not for herself — thanks to her abiding faith — but for others. She is surrounded by a family she adores, and appreciates the many kind messages and especially the prayers she is receiving.”

The former first lady has been suffering from numerous health complications for a long time, according to a report by CNN. Sources close to the presidential family said that Barbara Bush had been in and out of the hospital numerous times in the past year. She is dealing with COPD and congestive heart failure, along with the ailments of old age.

Mrs. Bush has been married to the former president for a total of 73 years. Born Barbara Pierce in 1925, she grew up in Flushing, New York. She and George Herbert Walker Bush met as teenagers. They married in Rye, New York in 1945.

Barbara Bush gave birth to a total of six children. Her sons George W. Bush and Jeb Bush both followed in their father’s footsteps and went into politics. Barbara Bush is the only living woman to be wife of one former president and mother of another.

As the 37th First Lady of the United States, Barbara Bush pursued the cause of universal literacy. She founded the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy, and called it “the most important issue we have.” Throughout her life, she continued working to break the cycle of generational illiteracy, especially in the U.S.

Throughout her life, Barbara Bush was an active public servant. She worked with numerous republican groups in and out of Washington, starting when her husband first returned from World War II and entered politics. She also had an eye for historical preservation, renaming the White House Preservation Fund to the White House Endowment Trust and working to revitalize the property as an iconic landmark.

Both Barbara and George H.W. Bush have struggled with their health in recent years. The couple has faced rumors of senility since around the time President Bush left office, and the former world leader was hospitalized less than a year ago due to complications from pneumonia, according to a report by The Telegraph.