Natasha Richardson flown to US at family's request

Telegraph UK ^ | March 18, 2009 | Mark Coleman, Melissa Whitworth and Nick Britten

[reagan_fanatic]

Last I’d heard she was brain dead. What a terrible tragedy.

[No Truce With Kings]

Gee. . . I guess free government-provided British medical care just isn’t good enough.

Not that there is anything wrong with her family coming to that decision if they want her to live.

[KevinDavis]

Doesn’t say much for health care in Canada... Prayers for her family..

[Mrs.Z]

They found out Canada has a 6 month wait on emergency brain surgery.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

That would be government-provided Canadian medical care...

[Uri’el-2012]

Could this be the kind of health care that 0bama wants for us ?

[Ann Archy]

Why isn’t the Canadian hospital good enough??? I feel very sorry for her, but aren’t these people British or Irish and they have National Health Care???

[YellowRoseofTx]

Last I’d heard she was brain dead. What a terrible tragedy.

FOX has been reporting the same thing. A doctor they had on said that when someone is brain dead they are dead. It is very sad. They said she has two sons, but I haven't heard their ages.

[rightwingintelligentsia]

This happened in Canada—I don’t think they could have risked flying her to the UK.

[VRWCmember]

If she could get free medical care in Canada (and if their system is so much better than ours that we need to overhaul our system to offer universal health coverage in the US), why in the world would they fly her to the US for treatment?

(I really don’t need a /sarcasm tag do I?)

[Dixie Yooper]

Good move on the part of the family to get her out of Canada and away from it's health care system. I would do the same for any of my loved ones.

[Ann Archy]

oh....right.

[stockpirate]

I guess socialized health care isn’t good enough for her.

Can’t say I blame the family.

God be with her.

[TMSuchman]

She was brought home to pass away with family & friends nearby. She was skiing with NO helmet & was taking lessons at the time of her accident. She was also a US Citizen.

Being a brain injured MARINE I can understand the pain & grief that her family is going through. Prayers for all in her life....

[silverleaf]

I think their major concern was to get her back home.
The family lives in NYC

[seatrout]

—She was brought home to pass away with family & friends nearby. She was skiing with NO helmet & was taking lessons at the time of her accident. She was also a US Citizen.—

Thank you (and thank you for your service BTW). Her being transported to NYC had nothing to do with the quality of Canadian health care; there is no hope for her, so she was brought to her (and Liam and their 2 sons) adopted hometown to pass away among loved ones.

[xp38]

She and Liam lived outside NYC I think they simply flew her body home.

[r9etb]

Her being transported to NYC had nothing to do with the quality of Canadian health care

But the fact that it immediately appeared in the comments says quite a lot about the quality of some FReepers' consciences.

[twigs]

Yes. Sigh.