Former President Jimmy Carter to Receive Hospice Care

(Reuters)—Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter has decided to receive hospice care and “spend his remaining time at home with his family” Instead of seeking additional medical intervention, Saturday’s Carter Center statement stated.

Carter, 98, has been alive longer than any other president after leaving the White House. He was a Democrat and served as President from January 1977 to Jan 1981.

“He has the full support of his family and his medical team. The Carter family asks for privacy during this time and is grateful for the concern shown by his many admirers,” In a statement, the center stated.

The Georgia native was suffering from many health issues, including melanoma. It spread to his liver and brain. But he had been responding well to the treatment.

His four-year tenure as the head of the country was marred by economic woes and the Iran hostage crisis. He resigned shortly after. Carter was also a key player in the Camp David agreement that led to the Egypt-Israeli Peace Treaty.

In 1980, he was defeated by Ronald Reagan, a Republican challenger. Reagan, a former actor and governor of California, won the election.

Carter, however, rehabilitated the legacy of his father by dedicating himself to humanitarian causes for over a decade.

In recognition of his efforts, he received the Nobel Peace Prize 2002 “untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.”

You can often see him with a hammer in his hand helping Habitat for Humanity to build affordable homes.

Carter and Rosalynn (his wife of 46 years) have four children.

(Reporting done by Maria Caspani, Rami Ayyub, and Maria Caspani; Editing done by Bill Berkrot