Apple C.E.O. to Take Medical Leave of Absence

Steve Jobs today wrote his second memo within a week regarding his health. In an email to employees, he said that he would be taking a leave of absence until June to "focus on my health," saying that "my health-related issues are more complex than I originally thought." Last week, Jobs issued a memo to the Apple community addressing the buzz around his absence from this year's Macworld conference, held last week.

At the time, Jobs did not directly tie his absence from Macworld to his health, though he did say that "getting to the root cause of [my health condition] and reversing it needed to become my #1 priority." Speculation over Jobs' health has stemmed from his self-acknowledged rapid weight loss. In his email last week, he attributed the loss to a hormone imbalance.

Jobs said that chief operating officer Tim Cook would run Apple in his absence.

Here's his memo to staff today:

Team,

I am sure all of you saw my letter last week sharing something very personal
with the Apple community. Unfortunately, the curiosity over my personal health
continues to be a distraction not only for me and my family, but everyone else
at Apple as well. In addition, during the past week I have learned that my
health-related issues are more complex than I originally thought.

In order to take myself out of the limelight and focus on my health, and to
allow everyone at Apple to focus on delivering extraordinary products, I have
decided to take a medical leave of absence until the end of June.

I have asked Tim Cook to be responsible for Apple's day to day operations, and
I know he and the rest of the executive management team will do a great job. As
CEO, I plan to remain involved in major strategic decisions while I am out. Our
board of directors fully supports this plan.

I look forward to seeing all of you this summer.

Steve