Days After 'Dead' Woman Was Found Alive, a New Incident

Last time it happened in Iowa; this time, a 'deceased' woman was found breathing on Long Island
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 7, 2023 10:50 AM CST
Days After 'Dead' Woman Was Found Alive, a New Incident
Stock photo.   (Getty Images/KatarzynaBialasiewicz)

It's not a trend we wanted to see in 2023, but it's one that's emerging. Last month, a senior citizen in Iowa was pronounced dead at a continuing care home, only to be found alive shortly thereafter at a funeral home (she then died two days later, for real). Now, a similar development, this time out of Long Island. The 82-year-old woman in this latest incident was pronounced dead around 11:15am Saturday at Water's Edge Rehab and Nursing Center in Port Jefferson, police in Suffolk County tell CBS News.

The unidentified woman was then transported to a funeral home in Miller Place, about 10 minutes away, where she was found to be breathing nearly three hours after the declaration of death. She was taken to a nearby hospital; it's not clear what her current condition is. There's been no comment from the nursing home, which had just sent out a release last month on being named as one of the best nursing homes in the nation by US News & World Report.

Personal injury attorney and legal analyst Andrew Lieb tells PIX11 that he was shocked to hear about this case, as well as the one in Iowa, which he couldn't believe drew just a $10,000 fine for the continuing care facility. "What's the point of a law that gives just a slap on the wrist for something so egregious?" he notes. "This is an awful situation that has caused unnecessary trauma for the impacted resident and her loved ones," a rep for the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James tells People, noting that they're investigating the Long Island incident. The New York State Department of Health is also looking into the matter, a spokesperson tells CBS. (More nursing home stories.)

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