In February 2023, viewers of “Today” couldn’t help but notice Hoda Kotb wasn’t on the show, and hadn’t been for some time. After she was absent for two weeks, Craig Melvin explained she was taking some time off to deal with a “family health issue.” That same day, Kotb’s fourth-hour co-host, Jenna Bush Hager, reiterated that information, but related that “Hoda is okay.”
When Kotb finally returned to the show, she revealed that one of her daughters had been seriously ill. “My youngest, Hope, was in the ICU for a few days and in the hospital for a little more than a week,” she said, without sharing details. “I’m so grateful she’s home. She is back home. I was waiting for that day to come. And we are watching her closely. I’m just so happy.” While Kotb didn’t share details of her daughter’s health scare, she told People, “Hope’s doing much better, much better. I think it’s going to be a longer road, but she is doing great.”
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A few months later, during an August episode, Kotb was discussing her new children’s book — “Hope is a Rainbow,” named for her daughter — and offered an update. “I wrote this a while ago, before Hope was, you know, got sick and is on the mend and all that stuff,” she said, as reported by People.
