SE Valley Times

When 59-year-old Tammy Bay was hospitalized for pneumonia on New Year’s Eve 2021, her husband claims she was treated for COVID-19 even though she tested negative for the coronavirus at the time of admittance.

Kurtis Bay alleges that the medical staff just went through the motions while treating his wife.

“Tammy was forced into government protocol that provided the hospital and their partners an incentive to operate according to the guidelines and policies our government and federal agencies created without a single consideration about us, her or our citizenry,” he said. “And without a single consideration for the outcomes of these policies.”

Bay asked the hospitalist to put his wife on the monoclonal antibody treatment he’d heard about on the news but was told she didn’t qualify.

“All of this stuff seemed really weird, but he said that as of Jan. 3, 2022, the federal government rationed monoclonals and Arizona was a state where they were rationing it,” he said. “In order to get them, you had to qualify but I was never told what those qualifications were. I still don't know.”

As previously reported, monoclonal antibody treatment is rationed due to a shortage. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services states on its website that monoclonal antibody therapies are reserved for patients with a positive COVID-19 test and who are at high risk for progressing to severe COVID-19 illness or hospitalization or both.

Northern Arizona Healthcare reports that to be eligible for monoclonal antibody treatment, patients must be 18 years of age or older, have a positive COVID-19 viral diagnostic test, be in the outpatient setting and have high-risk factors such as a weakened immune system, lung disease or diabetes.

After being transferred to and from the intensive care unit where doctors tried to heal her, Tammy died in the hospital on Jan. 20, 2022 of sepsis.

“She was sedated against her will, told high flow oxygen was necessary, scared into agreeing, told she would die if transferred to another hospital and intubated within 20 hours of a transfer request,” Bay said. “Tammy’s bowels were never cleaned out for over six days. She was never put back on steroids. She was malnourished and dehydrated. She never had a chance with these protocols in place.”

Bay recounted his experience to the Novel Coronavirus Southwestern Intergovernmental Committee during a May 25 hearing in Phoenix. The two-day event, co-chaired by Arizona state Rep. Steve Montenegro (R-Goodyear) and state Sen. Janae Shamp (R-Surprise), was organized to investigate the state's COVID-19 pandemic response.

In 2020, Arizona recorded 75,700 total deaths with 25.2% of those deaths coming from heart disease, 16.7% from cancer and 11.1% from COVID-19, according to Senate data. In 2021, of 81,482 total deaths, 24% were from heart disease, 15.7% from cancer and 15.6% from COVID-19.