Alberta resident Sheila Annette Lewis has found an American hospital to give her the organ transplant she needs, but she has to raise money to pay for it. .Lewis was denied the life-saving procedure in Alberta because she refused to be vaccinated against COVID-19..“With the help of a few dedicated friends, Sheila Annette has now found a hospital in the US that does not require the COVID vaccination for its transplant patients,” said Lewis’ family and friends in a statement. .“The testing alone is estimated to cost about $100,000 CAD, and the surgery, many hundreds of thousands dollars more.”.The GiveSendGo has raised $20,363 out of its $100,000 goal as of Wednesday. There are 319 people who have donated to it. .Lewis filed a court application to the Supreme Court of Canada in January, asking it to hear her case against a vaccine mandate for organ transplant patients. .READ MORE: Edmonton woman denied transplant over vax status to head to Supreme Court.Alberta Health Services (AHS) and six doctors removed her from a high-priority organ transplant wait list because she refused to take COVID-19 vaccines..She is dying of a terminal illness. She has been challenging the constitutionality of the vaccine mandate for transplant candidates put in place by AHS, an Alberta hospital, and six transplant doctors for more than one year..The Supreme Court said on June 8 it would not hear Lewis’ case against a vaccine mandate for organ transplant patients. .READ MORE: Supreme Court won't hear case involving unvaccinated Alberta organ transplant patient.“Ms. Lewis is deeply disappointed the Supreme Court of Canada decided not to hear her case,” said Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms-funded lawyer Allison Pejovic. .“She had hoped that justice would prevail in the courts for herself and other unvaccinated transplant candidates across Canada.” .Having had COVID-19 twice, Lewis asked her doctors for an antibody test, but they refused. Expecting she had COVID-19 antibodies and not wanting to subject herself to unnecessary vaccination which had never been tested on people with her condition, she declined to take the vaccines. .She arranged to have antibody testing and was found to have high levels of COVID-19 antibodies — higher than many people vaccinated against it. Her doctors continued to refuse to provide her with the transplant she needed, insisting she be vaccinated. .The Alberta Transplant Program has removed its vaccine mandate as a requirement for kidney transplants, and a judge has acknowledged previous infection with chickenpox exempts patients from requiring varicella vaccination. .Lewis’ case is subject to a court-imposed gag order, which is intended to protect her doctors from reprisal for denying her the transplant. The doctors, hospital, or organ she requires cannot be named. .“As Sheila Annette’s friends and family, we appeal to you for prayers for her — that she get her life-saving transplant — and, for a financial donation toward the cost of upcoming testing and treatment in the US,” said her family and friends.
