A new lawsuit against weight-loss surgery centers connected with the 1-800-GET-THIN ad campaign alleges that executives tried to cover up mistakes that led to the death of a Lap Band patient, according to documents filed Tuesday.
Paula Rojeski died Sept. 8 following a lap band procedure that was performed at a surgical center in West Hills, California, according to the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.
During the procedure, a machine that was supposed to provide Rojeski with oxygen was turned off, leaving her to breathe room air for nearly 30 minutes. In addition, Dr. Deming Chau, an anesthesiologist treating Rojeski, believed that a blood pressure cuff hooked up to Rojeski was malfunctioning when it indicated she was in distress, reads the lawsuit.
The surgeon, Dr. Julius Gee, stopped the surgery several times and asked Chau if everything was alright because Rojeski began "bucking" on the operating table and alarms on the monitors continued to go off.
The suit also states that an IV came loose during surgery resulting in anesthesia and IV fluids draining on to the ground.
Gee completed the procedure and left the operating room but was called back by Chau, who indicated something was wrong. Gee said Rojeski didn't have a pulse an asked someone to call 911.
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During the call, the lawsuit states that medical staff failed to provide "critical information" to the 911 dispatcher, including that Rojeski had been down with no pulse for more than 15 minutes.
She was transported to West Hills Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Lawyers for the weight-loss business did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
After Rojeski's death, Michael Omidi, who runs the business with his brother Julian, instructed others to remove all defective equipment before the coroner's office arrived, according to the lawsuit.
Omidi instructed Chau to "falsify" Rojeski's anesthesia record and remove the 15-minute gap before he told anyone she had stopped breathing and didn't have a pulse, the suit reads.
Further, the lawsuit alleges the company fraudulently billed patient's insurance companies and performed medically unnecessary surgical procedures including biopsies, hernia repairs, hysterectomies, and gallbladder removal.
To cut costs, the lawsuit claims surgery centers required staff to "recycle" surgical equipment and did not stock proper equipment to deal with life threatening situations.
In addition, customers who attended "free" seminars later noticed bills to their insurance companies for "medical visits," according to the lawsuit.
The coroner's office has not yet determined the cause of Rojeski's death, Ed Winter, Los Angeles County's assistant chief coroner, told the Los Angeles Times.
The lawsuit seeks damages from eight people and 13 companies which are controlled by the Omidis.
Five Southern California patients have died since 2009 following lap-band procedures at clinics affiliated with 1-800-Get-Thin. But the company cites a state report, saying that it has a significantly smaller fatality rate than hospitals that also do the surgery.
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