The Los Angeles Times of the United States reported on April 15 that the husband of Ms. Julie Murillo (Julie Murillo) in San Gabriel, California, had only 8 days from the onset of illness to his death. Because he was not tested for the virus at the time of medical treatment, It took her three weeks to confirm that her husband died of new coronary pneumonia. The article said that the United States restricts patients from doing virus testing, which may artificially reduce the number of confirmed cases.
Ms. Julie Murillo and her husband Julio Ramírez
Murillo's husband Julio Ramírez is 43 years old this year and belongs to a family The sales representative of the jewelry company, on March 8, after returning from a business trip in Indiana, began to show symptoms of new coronary pneumonia. He went to see a doctor, but the doctor only asked him if he had been abroad and refused to test him for the virus. He only prescribed medicine to let him rest at home. On March 16, he died at home.
Murillo was told that Ramirez died of ordinary pneumonia naturally, so an autopsy was not required, and she had to contact the funeral home to remove the body. Murillo vowed to find out the cause of her husband's death. The funeral home introduced her to the private autopsy company run by Vidal Herrera. On March 26, the staff took samples of the body.
Vidal Herrera
Herrera sends samples to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), but CDC does not accept samples provided by private companies. Murillo summoned family and friends to call government officials to request an autopsy. In the end, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health agreed to go to the funeral home to do an autopsy for her husband. On April 4, the autopsy result was positive for the new coronavirus. Murillo believes that if the virus is tested earlier, the husband may still have a chance.
Ms. Julie Murillo and her husband Julio Ramirez
Los Angeles County Health Department Director Barbara Ferrer said: "I can tell you We guarantee that even if someone is tested after the unfortunate death, we will get the result report and will count this person in the daily deaths." But Herrera believes that this situation is not common. Herrera’s company now receives a large number of calls for autopsy every day. He said: "The families of the deceased just want to know, ‘Did my family die from the new crown virus? The hospital did not tell me.’"
(Edit: YZM)
