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Woman Dies After 10-Hour Ambulance Wait
4 Apr
Summary
- A 71-year-old woman died after waiting 10 hours for an ambulance.
- She reported '10 out of 10 pain' but was transferred to a nurse line.
- A lawsuit alleges a dispatcher dismissed her worsening condition.
A Seattle woman, Pamela Hogan, 71, died on April 8, 2022, after waiting more than 10 hours for an ambulance.
She initially called 911 reporting severe knee pain, describing it as '10 out of 10.' Instead of immediate dispatch, her call was transferred to a nurse line operated by American Medical Response's parent company, Global Medical Response.
During her subsequent calls, Hogan reported being unable to move, eat, or drink, and soiled herself. She mentioned congestive heart failure, asking if it would expedite help, but a dispatcher allegedly responded, 'We're not going to play that game.'
An ambulance was eventually dispatched at 2:29 AM on April 9, 2022, approximately 10 hours after her first call. However, crews left after three minutes when she did not respond. Her body was discovered weeks later in her apartment.
Hogan's estate filed a wrongful death lawsuit in March 2025 against the City of Seattle, the Seattle Fire Department, and American Medical Response. A judge ruled in 2026 that the case can proceed to trial, finding factual disputes regarding the delays and their contribution to her death.
Attorneys for the city and AMR argue the link to her death is speculative, noting her cause of death was listed as probable heart disease and no autopsy was performed. However, investigators found no evidence of activity after April 10, 2022, suggesting she died within days.
At the time of the incident, Seattle's 911 system routed some callers through a nurse triage line, exempting them from response-time standards. A Seattle Fire Department review deemed the transfer appropriate but noted her heart condition might have warranted urgent reassessment.
