Utah’s District 53 Rep. Logan Wilde experienced a health scare last week that briefly landed him in the hospital, causing him to miss a day at the Legislature.

Wilde thought he was suffering from a heart attack on Jan. 25 while at his home in Morgan County. He was immediately rushed to the hospital, where tests revealed the lawmaker had high cholesterol and high blood pressure.

“We were trying to treat it naturally, but apparently that wasn’t working,” he said Tuesday morning while on his way to the Legislature. “It’s just one of those things that happens as you get older. They did tell me to lay off of the caffeine, though.”

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Wilde’s hospital visit only lasted a few hours, and he returned to his duties at the Legislature on Friday. He said he wanted to assure constituents the episode won’t affect his ability to participate in the current legislative session, which kicked off on Jan. 22.

“It wasn’t a pleasant experience going to the hospital, but we just wanted to make sure everything was going to be OK,” he said. “They put me on some medication and told me to exercise more.”

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Wilde’s district includes large swaths of Daggett, Rich, Morgan, Duchesne and Summit counties. In Summit County, District 53 includes: Park West, Kimball Junction, parts of Pinebrook, Promontory, Snyders Mill, Moose Hollow, Silver Springs, Jeremy Ranch, and North and South Summit.

He was elected to represent District 53 in 2016 after capturing a win over Democrat Cole Capener, who lives in the Snyderville Basin. He secured a spot on the Republican Party ticket after narrowly defeating longtime incumbent Mel Brown.

The health scare comes as Wilde, a second-year lawmaker, aims to be more active during this session than last. He is sponsoring two bills and is assigned to a slew of committees.

Wilde was appointed to the following committees and subcommittees: Executive Offices and Criminal Justice Appropriations Subcommittee; House Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment Committee; and House Political Subdivisions Committee.

“There have been some amazing bills coming up this session,” he said. “There are some bills that deal with air quality, such as a carbon credit bill. I’m also talking with the Utah Farm Bureau about the green belt bill that I am sponsoring.”

Wilde said he is working closely with the Utah League of Cities and Towns on a measure that would remove regulations for moderate-income housing for counties and cities. The state requires cities and counties to produce a report every two years on how the entities are mitigating costs for moderate-income housing, which includes homes ranging between $80,000 and $200,000. Wilde wants cities and counties to regulate those numbers themselves.

He was hopeful “something can be done” with tax reform. He said there are several measures trying to address different aspects of tax reform, with some still being written.

“You don’t want to pass one and then learn that there was a better one that you should have considered,” he said. “So we’re waiting until those bills are complete. But, those are the kind of things that are happening. It’s been busy.”

More than 1,000 bills are expected to be drafted during the legislative session. In 2017, more than 500 bills were passed.