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The daughter of a woman who died of coronavirus at a Kirkland, Wash., skilled care and rehabilitation facility filed a lawsuit against the facility for fraud and wrongful death, published reports said.
Deborah de los Angeles filed suit Friday against Life Care Centers of America Inc. in the early March death of her mother, Twilla Morin, The Seattle Times reported.
In the suit, filed in King County Superior Court, she claims the facility left voicemails on March 4, telling de los Angeles her mother died after she contracted COVID-19 while a resident at the facility, the report said.
In a statement, Life Care Center said: “Our hearts go out to this family and the loss they have suffered during this unprecedented viral outbreak. We are unable to comment on specific legal cases that are pending, but we wish this and all families peace. The loss of any of our residents at Life Care Center of Kirkland is felt deeply by us,” according to television station KING 5.
The nation’s first coronavirus death was at the Kirkland facility in late February, the report said, and since then there have been 129 detected cases and at least 37 deaths, according to the lawsuit.
WASHINGTON STATE NURSING HOME SEES NEARLY 50 EMPLOYEES TEST POSITIVE FOR CORONAVIRUS
The facility was fined more than $611,000 for “systemic failure” in responding to the outbreak of COVID-19 by the federal government, according to The Seattle Times. De los Angeles' lawsuit accuses the company of waiting 17 days before reporting the outbreak to state or federal health officials, KING 5 News reported.
“Although Defendants were on high alert for COVID-19 since January 2020, they lacked a clear path of action leading to a systemic failure. Instead of quarantining residents and staff, Defendants admitted new residents and threw a Mardi Gras party.
“Although Defendants were on high alert for COVID-19 since January 2020, they lacked a clear path of action leading to a systemic failure,” the lawsuit says. “Instead of quarantining residents and staff, Defendants admitted new residents and threw a Mardi Gras party.
”The center called de los Angeles early on the morning of March 3, telling her Morin’s fever spiked at 104 degrees,” The Seattle Times reported. They also told her on that call they suspected her mother had contracted the coronavirus, according to the newspaper.
An entrance sign is shown Thursday, April 2, 2020, at the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Wash. Federal authorities on Wednesday, April 1, 2020, proposed a fine of more than $600,000 for the Seattle-area nursing home connected to at least 40 deaths from the new coronavirus. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
In addition, the center called de los Angeles again later that day, saying Morin was “declining quickly,” The Times reported. De los Angeles asked about the resident physician but staff told her the doctor had not been on-site for weeks, according to The Times.
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The next day, facility staff left a voicemail telling de los Angeles her mother had died, according to KING 5.
“On an ongoing basis… Defendants suppressed, concealed, and covered-up material facts…in order to hide from residents such as Twilla Morin, the ongoing danger and threat to residents’ health,” the lawsuit says. “Defendants’ ongoing fraudulent suppression, concealment, and failure to disclose these material facts… was a direct and proximate cause of Twilla Morin’s catastrophic injuries, subsequent complications and ultimate death.”
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