A sick British grandmother who has been stranded in a Florida hospital with no travel insurance for seven weeks after catching Covid on the trip of a lifetime has had her trip home further delayed.
Patricia Bunting, 76, had been on a three-week holiday with her grandson and two sons to Disney World when she was hospitalised at the end of November.
She spent five days in intensive care with Covid before contracting pneumonia, which left her fighting for her life.
Ms Bunting, who is currently catheterised and immobile, has been stuck on US soil ever since whilst her medical bills soared on a daily basis.
Her anxious family have raised more than £40,000 as part of an effort to get the mother-of-four home to Wigan and to help cover her medical bills.
January 10, her ‘relieved’ daughter, Emma, announced that a medical flight to transfer her mother from Orlando, Florida, to Wigan Infirmary had been scheduled for January 14.
However, Ms Bunting did not fly home today and remains in Florida.
On Monday, Emma revealed that ‘complications’ meant her mother would have to stay, with no sign of when she can return home.
British grandmother Patricia Bunting has been stranded in Florida for seven weeks after falling ill with Covid and developing pneumonia
Ms Bunting had been on a three week holiday with her grandson and two sons to Disney World when she fell ill and was hospitalised at Orland’s Dr P. Phillips Hospital in November
Emma said: ‘I’m afraid mum isn’t coming home yet due to complications, so she’s in hospital in the US.
‘I haven’t got an exact date as of yet when she will be returning I’m afraid.
‘It’s a massive blow and shock to all our family as we are eagerly waiting for mum’s safe return.’
Patricia, who has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and atrial fibrillation (AF), which causes an abnormal and erratic heart rate, has been bed-ridden since late November.
The widow spent two years saving up for the family holiday, but couldn’t afford the £3,000 travel insurance quoted to her for the trip due to her pre-existing conditions.
However, she decided to fly anyway, alongside her children and grandson, fearing that the holiday may be her last ever trip to the US, which she dubbed her ‘happy place’, due to her age and poor health.
On Saturday, November 23, Patricia complained to her family of exhaustion before passing out in the bathroom.
She then spent five days in intensive care at Orlando’s Dr P Phillips Hospital.
Patricia’s family started a GoFundMe to raise enough money to bring her back home to the UK
A total of £40,000 was raised to help get Patricia home and Emma thanked all of those who donated for their ‘kindness and generosity’
Her sons and grandson had to take their scheduled flight home on November 28 after running out of money.
Emma said the British Embassy in Miami had been unable to help, only asking how they planned to pay the medical bills.
The hospital had been able to help with low cost accommodation, but the average healthcare spending per head in the US was $12,555 (£9,800) in 2022, according to analysts.
When Ms Bunting’s family hit the £40,000 mark on GoFundMe, Emma thanked all of those who donated for their ‘kindness and generosity’, adding: ‘It’s because of you that we’ve been able to make this happen.’
The family say they will keep the GoFundMe page open as they wait to receive the final medical bill.
Emma had previously said that the cost of a dedicated air ambulance to bring her mother back home was £130,000.
Patricia is a former cleaner and factory worker. According to her family she had considered getting health insurance for the trip, but when it was quoted at around £3,000 she decided to go without it.
Five days before she was scheduled to fly home on November 3, Patricia passed out in her hotel bathroom and was rushed to hospital.
As well as contracting Covid and pneumonia, she also suffered a gastrointestinal bleed and blood clots in her legs.
Patricia receives a state pension and since her bus driver husband Joseph died of a heart attack in 1993, she also receives a small widow’s pension.
Her family said that she was determined to have one final foreign holiday with her grandson William, who is 23 and has autism.
The pair were joined on their three-week trip to Walt Disney World in Florida by her unemployed sons Paul, 40, (Emma’s twin brother) and David, 42, who both live with their mother in Wigan.
Earlier this month a spokesman for Orlando Health Dr. P. Phillips Hospital described Mrs Bunting’s condition as ‘serious’.
In a statement, the hospital added: ‘Although we can’t comment on specific patient cases, Orlando Health has a longstanding generous financial assistance program for patients who have limited or no resources to pay for medically necessary services rendered at an Orlando Health facility.
‘Orlando is a popular international tourist destination and we encourage all visitors to consider purchasing travel insurance for unexpected, emergency medical expenses.’
