Coronavirus: Woman unable to visit dying mum due to red tape

A Melbourne woman was prevented from seeing her dying mother in a NSW nursing home because of bureaucratic bungling.

Loretta Mannix-Fell and her mother.

A Melbourne woman was prevented from seeing her dying mother in a nursing home because of excessive red tape imposed by the NSW government, which delayed her application despite the need for urgent consideration on compassionate grounds.

Loretta Mannix-Fell was told to rush from her home in Victoria to be with her 96-year-old mother at her nursing home in Tocumwal, on the NSW border, after health officials said she had 48 hours to live.

The Berejiklian government has been strident in its criticism of border closures applied in other states, namely Queensland, where the government has maintained a hard border with NSW for months, preventing residents from visiting sick relatives.

Ms Mannix-Fell told The Australian she scrambled to gather the paperwork required for the NSW government’s application process, however there was no response, forcing her to ring numerous times and emphasise the matter’s urgency.

“I was so physically and emotionally exhausted,” she told The Australian. “I really thought that I’d lodged this permit, that someone would review it, particularly as I’d rang twice, and they’d say, ‘here’s your permit’.”

Her mother, Therese, died while the application was still pending with officials. Minutes after receiving the news of her mother’s death, a NSW health official phoned Ms Mannix-Fell to say the application required further documentation.

“And I said it’s too late – mum’s died.”

The matter was raised in NSW Parliament this week by Murray MP Helen Dalton, who criticised Premier Gladys Berejiklian for “shaking her fist” at the Queensland government while similar restrictions were causing tragedies within her own state.

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard has also been a vocal critic of the Queensland Government, calling its border restrictions “silly” and “cruel” and politically motivated.

“We should all have the right to have our loved ones by our side during our final moments, but the Premier is denying country people that right for no reason at all,” Ms Dalton said.

Ms Mannix-Fell said the volume of paperwork she required for her permit application included a letter from her mother’s doctor confirming her deteriorating condition, a letter from the aged-care facility, and a COVID-safety and travel safety plan outlining her entry to NSW.

The letters took two days to secure, slowing down the application process.

Ms Dalton described the case as a tragedy and a case of “blatant discrimination” against rural communities.

There are currently no COVID-19 cases in the vast majority of regional Victorian towns and the 14-day rolling average for cases remains at zero.

“While the New South Wales Government allows 40,000 people to gather for the footy grand final, a country woman is not allowed to see her dying mother for the last time,” Ms Dalton said.

Ms Mannix-Fell said she and her sister did not attend her mother’s funeral, held last Thursday, because they still would have required permits to enter NSW. They have not been contacted by anyone in the NSW government to apologise.

“We didn’t have any faith in the system,” she said.

A spokesperson for NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard said the department extended its condolences to Ms Mannix-Fell for her loss.

“Ms Mannix-Fell’s application was submitted on November 1 and her mother passed away on November 3. Regrettably, this left little time for authorities to consider the appropriate issue to both assist Ms Mannix-Fell and keep the community safe.

“There have been more than 30,000 applications for exemptions received to date and sadly, in some instances, families have not been able to have an end-of-life visit.”