White House Sets New Absence Policy as Austin Is Set to Return

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is recovering well after surgery for prostate cancer and subsequent complications that left him hospitalized for two weeks, doctors said, as the White House announced new delegation-of-authority policies for senior administration officials designed to avert similar crises in the future.

Austin, 70, visited Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Maryland on Friday for a routine checkup, his doctors said in a statement. CNN reported he would return to the office Monday after several days working from home.

“He continues to recover well and is expected to make a full recovery,” the doctors said. “Secretary ...