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A Colorado woman who says the UCHealth system turned down her organ transplant because she is not vaccinated against COVID-19 says her “days are numbered.”
Earlier this week, the Colorado health system confirmed it would deny organ transplants to unvaccinated patients in “almost all situations.”
What are the details?
The woman, Leilani Lutali, told Fox News’ Laura Ingraham on Thursday that she suffered from stage 5 kidney failure.
“I believe my days are numbered as I continue to deteriorate my GFR numbers,” she said.
Lutali, who appeared alongside donor Jamiee Fougner, added that she had contacted the health system that she was “irresponsible for not receiving” the COVID-19 vaccine.
Fougner added, “How can I sit here and allow them to kill my friend when I have a perfectly good kidney and can save her life?”
The two met at a Bible study group over the past year. Fougner offered one of his kidneys to Lutali after the two developed a close friendship.
“They’re holding my kidney hostage and she’s going to die because they won’t give it to her.”
Fox reported that the health care system released a statement on the ad that read, “For transplant patients who contract COVID-19, the death rate ranges from around 20% to over 30%. This shows the extreme risk that COVID-19 poses for transplant recipients after their surgery. ”
UCHealth previously added: “This is why it is essential that the recipient and the living donor are vaccinated and take other precautions before undergoing a transplant. Surgeries can be postponed until patients take all precautions. necessary in order to give them the best chance of positive results. “
In its letter to Lutali, the health system said:
The University of Colorado Hospital transplant team determined that it was necessary to put you on the waiting list inactive. You will be inactivated on the non-compliance list by not receiving the COVID vaccine. You will have 30 days to start the vaccination series. If your decision is to decline the COVID vaccination, you will be removed from the kidney transplant list. You will continue to accumulate wait time, but you will not receive a kidney offer while you are inactive. Once you have completed the COVID vaccination series, you will be re-activated on the kidney transplant list pending any further changes in your condition.
Ingraham stressed that she thinks the case is a “classic” example of “discrimination”.
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