A Canadian family reportedly drove home from the US with a relative's dead body in the car to avoid the high cost of American healthcare

Kelly McLaughlin

April 2, 2019 3:42 PM

A man in his 60s and his mother drove across the border into Quebec from Vermont with the corpse of the man's dead father in the car on Sunday, local media reported.

Cars line up to cross into the US at the US:Canada border on February 25, 2017, in Saint Bernard de Lacolle, Quebec. File photo

Paramedics found that the man had been dead for at least two days during the family's drive from Florida to Canada, according to the Journal De Montreal .
The Canadian family reportedly said they didn't want to want to stop to use the American healthcare system or deal with repatriating the body from the US to Canada because of the high costs.

Police in Canada are investigating after a family attempted to drive across the border into Quebec from Vermont with a corpse in their vehicle.

Local authorities sret du Qubec told the Montreal Gazette that they stopped a van carrying a man in his 60s, his mother, and his dead father, at about 2:30 a.m. on Sunday.

Paramedics found the man had been dead for at least two days, and the mother and son did not want to stop to use the American healthcare system or deal with repatriating the body from the US to Canada because of the high costs, the Journal De Montreal reported .

The family was driving back to Canada after a trip to Florida when the father, who was in his 80s, suffered a heart attack and died, according to the Journal.

There were no signs of violence, and the family has not been publicly identified.

President of the Union of Customs and Immigration, Jean-Pierre Fortin, told the Journal that its "very rare" to see a corpse at border crossings.

Paramedics first transferred the body to Ormstown Memorial Hospital, where the man was confirmed dead, and later taken to a morgue in Montreal.

According to data from Allianz Global Assistance Canada reported by CTV News last year , 78% of Canadians get travel insurance when going on vacation.

Dan Keon, vice president of market management at Allianz, told CTV that even getting a sprained ankle treated could cost a Canadian without travel insurance around $2,000 at an American hospital.

"More serious injuries requiring surgery or hospital stays, such as those resulting from auto collisions, will also increase medical costs considerably and possibly into the tens of thousands of dollars," he said last year.

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Kelly McLaughlin

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