Maryland House Speaker Michael Busch gravely ill, on ventilator

Maryland House Speaker Michael Busch's condition has "taken a turn for the worse," his staff announced Sunday, and he has been put on a ventilator to help him breathe.

Busch, 72, is the longest-serving House speaker in Maryland history. He has been hospitalized with pneumonia for a week, missing the final days of the 2019 legislative session, which will end Monday at midnight.

It is the latest health setback for the Anne Arundel County Democrat, who underwent a liver transplant and heart bypass surgery in recent years.

"Yesterday, doctors at University of Maryland Medical Center made the determination that Speaker Busch's breathing had taken a significant turn for the worse and the Speaker made the decision to use a ventilator to help his breathing," his chief of staff Alexandra Hughes said in a statement.

"Unfortunately, his condition has worsened over the past few hours," she said.

“His family asks for privacy at this time and to keep the Speaker in your thoughts and prayers.”