as family
considers lawsuit over botched procedure: sources
Joan Rivers’ daughter is keeping her “fingers crossed” for a miracle to
bring the 81-year-old comedic legend back from the brink — even as the family
considers legal action over the botched procedure that caused her collapse.
Doctors began lifting the feisty funny lady from her medically induced
coma Sunday at Mount Sinai Hospital as Melissa Rivers, her only child, waited
to see how the legendary comic will respond.
“The waking-up process has begun and will take until Tuesday,” a source
close to the family told the Daily News. “There is real concern that the part
of the brain that controls motor skills may have been compromised, leaving her
as either a vegetable or in a wheelchair.”
And that has the family considering a lawsuit.
“Shock and upset is turning to anger, and they are looking for someone
to blame,” said a source close to the family, hinting at action against
Yorkville Endoscopy, where Rivers had a routine throat procedure on Thursday.
“The night before, she was performing and now she is on life support,”
the source continued. “An 81-year-old should not have that procedure as an
outpatient. Very ill advised.”
For now, Melissa Rivers focused on the coming medical news.
“We are keeping our fingers crossed,” she said in a statement Sunday
that also thanked admirers of her mother for an outpouring of support.
She said her mom, who is in serious condition, was “resting
comfortably” and asked that “everyone keep her in your thoughts and prayers.”
Even as she tried to sound upbeat, a source told The News that Melissa
Rivers is “totally hysterical and is at a loss for what to do (because) they
won’t know the extent of the damage until Tuesday at the earliest.”
Sources have told The News that Joan Rivers would not want to live unless
she could enjoy “a full and active life,” as one source put it. “(She) would
never want to be a burden on anyone.”
The host of “Fashion Police” on E! went into cardiac and respiratory
arrest Thursday morning while undergoing a procedure on her vocal cords at the
private Upper East Side clinic.
Doctors subsequently put the
Emmy-winner in a coma to stabilize her vital signs. As of Sunday, she was
breathing with the help of a machine.
Rivers’ friend and collaborator, Jay Redack, visited the stricken
comedian on Sunday and said he was stunned by her sudden health setback.
Redack said he had gone to dinner with her on Wednesday night and that
they had discussed the minor throat procedure she was about to undergo.
He said Rivers, who performed a comic routine Wednesday night at the
Laurie Beechman Theater near Times Square, showed no signs of a pending medical
crisis.
“We talked about life, Melissa, boyfriends, tennis lessons, and talked
about her act,” said Redack — who co-wrote “Rabbit Test,” the 1978 movie Rivers
directed, and has been a close friend for 40 years.
“You know how polarizing she could be, but people don’t realize what a
fantastic lady she is, the charities that she supports, without fanfare,
without people knowing,” Redack said. “She is a great person.”
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