Two related lawsuits contend Arizona businesses and individuals marketed and profited from weight-loss operations in Mexico that led to the death of one patient and harmed several others.
Jessica Ballandby is a plaintiff in two lawsuits filed this month at Maricopa County Superior Court that take aim at medical tourism and the doctors, referral agents and aftercare businesses that encourage patients to cross the border for care.
In one lawsuit, Ballandby names as defendants the Show Low (Arizona) Unified School District, former Show Low school district officials, Summit Healthcare Regional Medical Center and Tijuana surgeon Mario Almanza.
Ballandby alleges that Sandra Brimhall, a principal at her son's Show Low elementary school, "used high-pressure sales techniques" that persuaded her to get a weight-loss operation in Tijuana, Mexico.
The 2014 surgery performed by Almanza led to several medical complications, including severe bleeding, sepsis and and continuing health problems, the lawsuit states. When she returned home to Arizona, she spent nearly one month at Summit Healthcare in Show Low before she was released. She later spent five weeks and underwent emergency surgery at a Scottsdale hospital.
The lawsuit says Brimhall gave "inconsistent statements" about getting paid to refer patients to Mexico but also "confided with Ms. Ballandby that she did receive kickback" for referring patients to Almanza.
None of the individuals or entities named as defendants have filed paperwork responding to the lawsuit's claims.
Brimhall did not return an email request for comment, and a representative of the Show Low School District did not return a message about the lawsuit. A Summit Healthcare spokeswoman said the hospital does not comment on continuing litigation.
Almanza could not be reached. A customer service representative of Weight Loss Agents, a Florida-based business that facilitates appointments for Almanza, said she would relay an interview request to the Tijuana surgeon.
Weight Loss Agents owner Jarred Cohen said he did not feel comfortable commenting because his company was not a party to the lawsuit.
Accusations of misrepresentation
The second lawsuit by Ballandby and three other patients claim several doctors, businesses and consultants involved in medical tourism and postsurgical care misrepresented the "nature, quality and safety of bariatric procedures."
Justin Blackburn, one of the plaintiffs in the second lawsuit, claimed he had complications such as acid reflux and esophagitis after getting gastric-band "fills" following his operation. These fills involve injecting saline through a port to tighten the opening to the stomach.
The lawsuit states Blackburn's stepmother, Elizabeth Erickson, died following complications from her surgery and aftercare in 2013.
Blackburn said he pursued the lawsuit against individuals and businesses to raise awareness about potential risks.
"We've got to put a stop to this and draw enough attention so someone can do something," Blackburn said.