Sen. Susan Collins of Maine disclosed this week that she has had an essential tremor throughout her career in the Senate.
“This benign condition, which affects approximately 1 in 20 people over the age of 40, does not interfere at all with my ability to do my job,” Collins, 73, said in a statement to the Press Herald Wednesday evening.
Collins, who has served in the Senate since 1996, first disclosed the condition to a WCSH reporter this week.
In her statement, the Republican noted the tremor is “occasionally inconvenient” and has been the topic of “cruel comments online,” but said “it does not hinder my ability” to perform as a U.S. senator.
Both Collins and Graham Platner, a veteran who is the presumptive Democratic nominee to take on the Republican for her seat in November, have recently been ridiculed on social media relating to their health.
While the tremors were the subject of comments about Collins, some have questioned Platner’s 100% disability rating.
Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.
We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.
We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.
You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.
Show less