Today’s Al Roker Thanks His Wife and NewYork-Presbyterian for Saving His Life

After he had been away for two months due to serious health issues, the Today show welcomed back beloved weatherman and TV personality Al Roker, who credits his wife, Deborah Roberts, and the doctors and staff at NewYork-Presbyterian for saving his life and getting him healthy enough to return to work.

In a conversation with his co-hosts on the Today show, Al explained he had been dealing with blood clots as well as internal bleeding. In November 2022, his medical team discovered he had two bleeding ulcers, he said, and he needed to undergo a seven-hour surgery that included resectioning his colon and taking out his gallbladder.

“[We] were extraordinarily concerned about Al,” Dr. Felice H. Schnoll-Sussman, Al’s gastroenterologist and the director of the Jay Monahan Center for Gastrointestinal Health at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, told Today in a televised segment. “He had a life-threatening experience. I mean, there’s just no doubt about that.”

Deborah said this experience was “the most tumultuous, frightening journey” she and her husband had ever been on. While it was scary, Al said he knew the doctors and staff at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center had his back.

“I’d never been in a medical intensive care unit, let alone a surgical ICU, but the doctors and nurses were fantastic. The folks [at] NewYork-Presbyterian, they are just world-class,” he said. “I’m blessed I had such a great care team.”

Dr. Schnoll-Sussman added that Al is doing well and what’s most important right now is support from his family and friends.

“What he needs now, and what he’s getting, is what we call tender loving care,” Dr. Schnoll-Sussman told Today. “He just needs time, good food, rest, being with friends and family, and getting back to what he loves to do.”

Watch the full Today show segment here.