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 This is almost too tragic to be true. But it is.
A lesbian couple, Lisa Pond and Janice Langbehn from Washinton state, was in Miami waiting to embark on a cruise with their three children in February of last year. Then Pond suddenly collapsed. More:
Once Langbehn and the children arrived at the
hospital, the hospital refused to accept information from her about Ponds’s
medical history.
Langbehn says she was informed that she was in an
antigay city and state, and she could expect to receive no information or
acknowledgment as family.
Pond passed away from a brain aneurysm. More:
Other than one five minute visit, which was
orchestrated by a Catholic priest at Langbehn’s request to perform last rites,
and despite the doctor’s acknowledgement that no medical reason existed to
prevent visitation, neither she nor her children were allowed to see Pond until
nearly eight hours after their arrival.
[via 365gay.com]
To add to the travesty, Langbehn was denied Pond's death certificate by the State of Florida as well as the Dade County Medical Examiner. Langbehn and Lambda Legal announced a lawsuit against the hospital this week.
Here is a link to the family's blog from the month of February 2007. The kids were so excited to go on an R-Family cruise (Rosie O'Donnell's gay family cruise line). Read from the bottom up; it's heartbreaking.
We've been trumpeting marriage in Californa the past week—it's stories like this that remind us we still have a long way to go in our fight for equal rights.
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Blogs 
written by Scott Rose on June 26, 2008
I can't find any references to the name(s) of the Jackson Memorial Hospital, Miami's employees who behaved this way. Lambda lawsuit or no, those names should be made public, and the hospital should be hounded until the people are fired. It is crucial that Lambda and the surviving victims, Janice Langbehn and her children, not settle out of court with Jackson Memorial Hospital, and battle on to be awarded a staggering sum of money, so that every other hospital in the country will understand the consequences of such behavior.
written by Pep on June 27, 2008
Thanks Alex for highlighting this story and i agree with Scott - these people involved should be shamed for their conduct and be hounded.
written by jan on July 02, 2008
the lawsuit is posted on my blog at www.RwavesofChange.com
and lists the 2 attending physicians and the social worker Garnet Frederick who told me I was in an anti-gay city and state
written by Alex on July 03, 2008
Thanks for the link, Jan!
written by gerald on July 03, 2008
This is outrageous and so maddening! This is why marriage is and NEEDS to be everyone's right!
written by William DeWolf on July 07, 2008
if money makes the world go round and money talks and miami and florida are antigay, prehaps we should spend our money in more gay friendly cities and states