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Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 85, Hospitalized After Fracturing Ribs In Fall

WASHINGTON, D.C. (CBSNewYork/AP) – Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been hospitalized after falling and fracturing three ribs.

Officials said the 85-year-old fell in her office Wednesday night.

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She initially went home, but went to George Washington University Hospital early Thursday morning after experiencing discomfort overnight.

Officials said Ginsburg fractured three ribs on her left side and was admitted for observation and treatment.

In her absence, the court was going ahead Thursday with a courtroom ceremony welcoming new Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who joined the court last month. President Donald Trump and new acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker were expected to attend.

Ginsburg has had a series of health problems. She broke two ribs in a fall in 2012. She has had two prior bouts with cancer and had a stent implanted to open a blocked artery in 2014. She also was hospitalized after a bad reaction to medicine in 2009.

Mayor Bill de Blasio wished the New York City native a "speedy recovery."

Appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1993, Ginsburg rebuffed suggestions from some liberals that she should step down in the first two years of President Barack Obama's second term, when Democrats also controlled the Senate and would have been likely to confirm her successor.

She already has hired clerks for the term that extends into 2020, indicating she has no plans to retire.

Ginsburg leads the court's liberal wing.

(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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