Bernard Ayotte Heart Attack: Maine State Representative Drove 259 Miles Home For Medication

Maine State Representative Bernard Ayotte (R) drove 259 miles while suffering a heart attack, the Bangor Daily News reported Monday.

According to the paper, the 69-year-old representative, who had suffered one heart attack in the past, began having chest pains during a March 7 hearing at the State House in Augusta, Maine. Having left his medication at home in Caswell, Maine, Ayotte made the four-hour drive home -- suffering the entire time.

“I felt very bad," Ayotte said. "I got up and I left the committee and said to myself, ‘I’ve got to go home.' I was suffering badly that whole evening."

The next morning Ayotte consulted his doctor, who discovered the pains were in fact a heart attack. Ayotte was rushed to a hospital via helicopter, spent the next few days in the intensive care unit and was released on March 13, the Bangor Daily News added.

With his constituents in mind, Ayotte told the St. John Valley Times that he is eager to return to lawmaking.

"I’m still weak,” said Ayotte. “But, I have so much work to do, I am not happy being away from Augusta.”

Elected in 2004, Ayotte is currently serving his fourth term, representing several towns in northern Maine.