Exclusive: Justice Samuel Alito was taken to a hospital last month in previously undisclosed incident

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Source: CNN Politics

Updated Apr 3, 2026, 1:49 PM ET
PUBLISHED Apr 3, 2026, 11:41 AM ET


Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito was taken to a hospital after becoming ill last month at a Federalist Society dinner in Philadelphia, according to people with knowledge of the March 20 incident, which had not been previously reported. The justice was evaluated and administered fluids for dehydration. He returned to his home in Virginia that night with his security team. In the two weeks since the incident, Alito has attended oral arguments and appeared healthy during the usual give-and-take with lawyers at the lectern.

Alito, who turned 76 on Wednesday and has served as a justice for 20 years, has become the subject of widespread speculation from commentators across the ideological spectrum and the news media over whether he might retire. (He has refused to answer journalists’ questions on the subject.) Supreme Court spokeswoman Patricia McCabe confirmed Alito’s visit following CNN’s exclusive report.

“On the evening of Friday, March 20, Justice Alito felt ill during an event in Philadelphia. Out of an abundance of caution, he agreed with his security detail’s recommendation to see a physician before the three-hour drive home. After that examination and the administration of fluids for dehydration, he returned home that night, as previously planned,” McCabe said in a statement. “Justice Alito was thoroughly checked by his own physician, and he returned to work the following Monday for oral argument.”

Information regarding the health of the justices, who are the final word of the reach of the Constitution in American life, is often difficult to obtain. The Supreme Court’s public information office previously declined to reveal that Chief Justice John Roberts had fallen at a country club near his suburban Maryland home in June 2020, injured his head and taken by ambulance to a hospital until it was reported by the Washington Post.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/03/politics/samuel-alito-hospital-philadelphia-march