Wendy Williams was Monday taken by ambulance from an assisted living facility in Midtown Manhattan to Mount Sinai West hospital on Monday morning, according to sources.
Police responded to the assisted living facility in Hudson Yards after the fire department was called for a wellness check, sources said.
Two NYPD officers and a sergeant, as per protocol, responded to the assisted living facility in response to a 911 call about a woman in distress, according to a source briefed on the situation. When they arrived, Williams was calm. She was not restrained and was able to get into the ambulance on her own.
The episode is being treated as a standard call for service and there is no ongoing NYPD investigation.
Nearly a month ago, Williams opened up about her fight for freedom from her yearslong court-ordered guardianship in a phone interview with “Nightline.”
The media personality and former talk show host, who has been in a court-ordered guardianship since 2022, described where she has been living for the past few years.
“As I said, because it’s a fact, this is the memory unit. That’s what this floor is called, the memory unit. And it is true that these people who live here don’t remember anything,” she said. “Look, I don’t belong here at all. This is ridiculous.”
Williams’ care team announced in February 2024 that she had been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia and primary progressive aphasia — a diagnosis Williams now vehemently disputes.
“Frontotemporal dementia? Uh, how dare you. And I’m not saying you, because I’ve been accused of having that,” she said. “And how do you prove it by keeping me locked here so that you can’t… I can’t see, look. I can’t go out.”
Dementia is an umbrella term that describes “the impaired ability to remember, think or make decisions that interferes with doing everyday activities,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Frontotemporal dementia is caused by degeneration of the frontal and/or temporal lobes of the brain, according to the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration. It is the most common form of dementia for people under the age of 60 and there is currently no known cure.
Primary progressive aphasia is “a neurological syndrome in which language capabilities become slowly and progressively impaired,” according to the National Aphasia Association. The organization notes that, unlike other forms of aphasia, primary progressive aphasia does not result from a stroke or brain injury and instead is caused by the “deterioration of brain tissue important for speech and language.”
Now, in response to Williams publicly questioning her diagnosis, Williams’ court-appointed guardian is asking the court for a new medical evaluation.
In a previous statement to ABC News, an attorney for the guardian said that because the case is under seal, she couldn’t defend herself from the multiple claims against her but denied all wrongdoing, adding that “…all of the court-appointed Guardian’s activities are regulated and supervised by the Court.”
The former queen of daytime’s life was chronicled in the docuseries “Where Is Wendy Williams?” that aired in February 2024. It painted a dark picture of her reality.
At the time it aired, Williams’ niece, Alex Finnie, defended the docuseries and denied that it exploited her aunt as some critics have argued. The docuseries also resulted in a lawsuit, which is still ongoing, by Williams’ guardian on Williams’ behalf against A&E.
Wendy Williams Hunter is an American former broadcaster, media personality, and writer. From 2008 to 2021, she hosted the nationally syndicated television talk show The Wendy Williams Show.
Prior to television, Williams was a radio DJ and host and quickly became known in New York City as a shock jock.
By Agencies
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