Undocumented woman says she was denied emergency C-section at Edmonton hospital – CBC
Perla Estrada says she was asked to pay $5,000 upfront for emergency procedure
Apr 09, 2024
Alberta Health Services is investigating after an undocumented woman says she was denied an emergency C-section at an Edmonton hospital last month.
Perla Estrada, 35, said a doctor told her to go to the hospital on March 25 after an ultrasound revealed she had low amniotic fluid and needed a C-section.
She said at the Royal Alexandra Hospital, she was told she had to pay $5,000 upfront for the procedure and that no doctor there would see her unless she did so.
As an undocumented person without medical insurance, Estrada said she expected to pay for the cost of her hospital care after the birth, but she did not have enough money to pay the amount upfront.
She later went to the Misericordia Community Hospital, where she had the C-section and gave birth to her daughter Violet.
