WASHINGTON, June 5 (Xinhuanet) -- Former US President Ronald Reagan's health is deteriorating over the past several days, and "the time is getting close," US media reports said Saturday, quoting sources familiar with Reagan's health conditions.

    Reagan, 93, is suffering from the Alzheimer's disease. He served in the White House from 1981-1989 and is the longest-surviving US president.

    The movie star turned president disclosed his disease in a letter to the nation in Novmeber 1994. He said he was suffering from the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, a degenerative braindisorder that leads to mental disorientation and physical decline.

    "I now begin the journey that will lead me into the sunset of my life. I know that for America there will always be a bright dawn ahead," he said in the letter. He has been out of the public eye ever since.

    Media reports quoted sources familiar with Reagan's health condistions as saying that the White House has been told that Reagan could die within "weeks or months."

    "Don't be surprised if ... the time is getting close," the sources said. Enditem