- Gary Fowler, 56, died in his Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan, home on April 7, after experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.
- His stepson, Keith Gambrell, told USA Today that Fowler was never tested for the virus, and three hospitals turned him away.
- Gary Fowler's father tested positive for the virus and died on April 6.
- Gambrell said that several of his relatives are now experiencing symptoms and are awaiting test results for the virus at home.
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A family in
Gary Fowler, 56, died in his Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan, home on April 7, after experiencing shortness of breath, a cough, and a fever. Fowler was never tested for the virus because hospitals sent him away, his stepson, Keith Gambrell, of Detroit, told USA Today.
"My dad passed at home, and no one tried to help him," Gambrell, 33, said. "He asked for help, and they sent him away. They turned him away."
Gambrell said his stepfather started showing symptoms of COVID-19 after the family visited Fowler's father, David Fowler, on March 22. The family thought David Fowler, 76, had the flu, but after he passed out in the bathroom, the family called 911 and he was admitted to Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, where he tested positive for COVID-19 and was put on a ventilator.
In the weeks that followed, Gary Fowler started showing symptoms, Gambrell told USA Today.
Gary Father died without being tested because three hospitals turned him away, his stepson says
Gambrell said his stepfather was turned away from Beaumont Hospital in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, Detroit Receiving Hospital, and Detroit's Henry Ford Hospital. Fowler told
"They tell him, 'You're fine. You have bronchitis. Go home. Drink water. Act like you have the virus,'" Gambrell recalled health officials telling his father, USA Today reported.
Gary Fowler was never admitted to a hospital and died at home on April 7. One day earlier, his father died at Henry Ford.
"I honestly believe it was because my father was black. They didn't honestly take his symptoms serious enough to give him a test," Gambrell told CBS This Morning.
The day Gary Fowler died, his wife, Cheryl, started showing COVID-19 symptoms. She was later hospitalized with the virus and put on a ventilator, CBS This Morning reported.
Gambrell told USA Today that several of his relatives now have COVID-19 symptoms and are waiting for test results to see if they, too, have the virus.
African Americans have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.
About a third of all COVID-19 cases in Michigan are African American patients, Joneigh Khaldun, the chief medical executive for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said during a Facebook Live interview Thursday. African Americans account for 14% of the population in Michigan.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has created a task force to study racial disparities in COVID-19 cases, medical bias, and the impact of such cases on affected communities.
Beaumont issued a statement to USA Today following Gary Fowler's death, saying: "We are doing all we can to evaluate, triage and care for patients based on the information we know at the time. When making care decisions, we do not discriminate against anyone based upon their gender, race, or any other factor. We grieve the loss of any patient to COVID-19 or any other illness."
Henry Ford Health System said it does not deny care to anyone.
"Some patients will meet criteria for admission at the time, while others may not. In the case of COVID-19, we have a multistep triage process. As patients arrive to our emergency department, all are screened for COVID-19 symptoms. Those with mild or moderate symptoms who do not meet admission criteria at the time they present may be sent home with strict instructions to return immediately if symptoms worsen," a Henry Ford spokesperson told USA Today. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the Fowlers and all families devastated by the effects of COVID-19."
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