Rudy Giuliani, the 81-year-old former New York City mayor, has been moved out of the intensive care unit at Good Samaritan Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, after a severe bout of pneumonia that left him on a ventilator and fighting for his life.
Spokesman Ted Goodman shared the update on X by Wednesday night, confirming that Giuliani remains hospitalized but has cleared the most dangerous phase of the illness. Newsmax reported that doctors had diagnosed the cause as double pneumonia, a life-threatening emergency, and that sources close to Giuliani described his turnaround as "remarkable."
The man once known as "America's Mayor" for his leadership after the September 11 attacks contracted the respiratory illness on Sunday, shortly after returning from a trip to Paris. He was rushed to the hospital and placed on mechanical ventilation to maintain adequate oxygen levels.
Giuliani's condition deteriorated rapidly enough that a Catholic priest administered last rites, as previously reported. But within roughly 24 hours, he had improved enough to breathe without mechanical assistance.
His spokesman linked the severity of the episode to a pre-existing diagnosis of restrictive airway disease, which Goodman said stems from Giuliani's proximity to Ground Zero on September 11, 2001, and his frequent visits to the site in the three months that followed. Giuliani was just two blocks away when the first tower fell that day.
Just The News reported that Giuliani's spokesperson said the respiratory illness was "exacerbated by his exposure to toxins and dust from the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001." The former mayor had been in critical but stable condition before the improvement.
Goodman posted on X:
"Mayor Giuliani, the man who took down the Mafia, saved New York City and ran toward the towers on September 11th, is the same fighter he's always been, and he's winning this fight."
He added a second message asking for continued prayers:
"The power of prayer is working. The mayor feels it. We feel it. Please keep them coming for America's Mayor, Rudy Giuliani."
The connection between Giuliani's current hospitalization and the toxic dust cloud that blanketed lower Manhattan nearly a quarter-century ago is more than a talking point. Breitbart noted that Giuliani had been diagnosed with restrictive airway disease tied to his exposure to dust-filled air and asbestos after the attacks. That underlying condition, combined with pneumonia, created the emergency that landed him on a ventilator in Florida.
The Daily Mail reported that Giuliani is now applying for enrollment in the World Trade Center Health Program, a federal program that provides free medical care to emergency workers and others exposed to toxins following the September 11 attacks. Attorney Michael Barasch said he is representing Giuliani in that application.
Barasch stated plainly why the effort matters:
"I'm proud to represent him and get him the health care he deserves, so he can enjoy the same benefits of healthcare at no cost to people who have been certified with 9/11 illnesses."
The World Trade Center Health Program has enrolled more than 152,000 people. In the past year alone, it paid out more than 600,000 medical claims at a cost of nearly $350 million. Beneficiaries pay no copayments or deductibles. If Giuliani is certified by the program as someone suffering from a September 11-related illness, he or his family may also be eligible to seek compensation from the federal September 11th Victim Compensation Fund.
Giuliani had spoken out in support of the program's enabling measure in 2010 and criticized fellow Republicans who opposed it, a fact that adds a layer of irony to his current need for its benefits, but also reflects a consistent position on the issue.
The health scare drew public statements from figures across conservative media and politics. Dan Bongino, the former deputy FBI director, wrote that Giuliani was "the most transformative figure in the history of NY City politics."
"He pulled off an economic and public safety miracle in a relatively short amount of time, and the city rose from the dead. I worked for the NYPD during the end of his second term. It was the honor of a lifetime."
When Giuliani was first hospitalized in critical condition, support came swiftly from President Trump and other public figures. Goodman's Wednesday update confirmed the family's gratitude: "The mayor and his family appreciate the outpouring of love and prayers sent his way."
Giuliani was able to communicate with both of his children, Caroline and Andrew, as his condition improved, a sign that the worst had passed.
A source close to Giuliani told Newsmax that the former mayor is already looking ahead:
"Rudy is anxious to get back on the media circuit. He wants to be out there fighting for President Trump as soon as doctors allow it."
Giuliani's hospitalization comes after years of legal and financial turmoil. He filed for bankruptcy in 2023 with debts of $153 million owed to creditors. President Trump pardoned Giuliani in November of last year, closing one chapter of his legal difficulties.
The former mayor's career arc has been one of the most dramatic in modern American politics. Elected mayor in 1993, he oversaw a historic drop in crime and an economic revival in New York City. He ran for the Senate in 2000 but abandoned the race against Hillary Clinton after being diagnosed with prostate cancer. His response to the September 11 attacks cemented his national reputation.
He became a staunch ally of President Trump, campaigning alongside him and a group of Republicans to challenge the 2020 election results. That effort, including a now-famous press conference outside a landscaping business in Pennsylvania, drew intense criticism from the left and contributed to his legal and financial woes.
Even as Giuliani fought his way off a ventilator, some in the media chose mockery over restraint. Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel drew fire for joking about the former mayor's condition, prompting Melania Trump to call for his firing, a reminder that for certain corners of the press, even a man's hospital bed is fair game for partisan entertainment.
Giuliani remains hospitalized as of the latest update. No official medical statement from Good Samaritan Medical Center has been released, and the exact timeline for his discharge is unclear. His spokesman has not provided details on how long the full recovery might take.
What is clear is that the 81-year-old's lungs still carry the cost of September 11, a cost the federal government built a program to address, and one Giuliani is now seeking to claim for himself. Whether he is certified for the World Trade Center Health Program will depend on the application process, but the underlying facts are hard to dispute: he was two blocks from the towers when they fell, he spent months at Ground Zero, and he is now in a hospital bed with damaged lungs.
The man who ran toward the towers is still paying the price for it. That ought to count for something, no matter where you stand on the politics that followed.
