WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Former U.S. first lady Rosalynn Carter, the wife of former President Jimmy Carter, has entered hospice care at home, Carter Center said in a statement on Friday.

"She and President Carter are spending time with each other and their family. The Carter family continues to ask for privacy and remains grateful for the outpouring of love and support," the statement issued on behalf of their grandson, Jason Carter, said.

In May 2023, the Carter family had said the former first lady had dementia but was continuing to live happily at the couple's home in Plains, Georgia.

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter are the longest-married presidential couple, having wed in 1946 when he was 21 and she was 18.

After his solo term ended in 1981, he also has enjoyed more post-White House years than any president before him, and she has played an instrumental role during those years, including as part of the nonprofit Carter Center the couple established in 1982 and the Habitat for Humanity charity.

(Reporting by Ismail Shakil and Doina Chiacu; Editing by Eric Beech and Tim Ahmann)