A Seattle cancer patient in need of alternative cancer treatment was shocked when his airline turned him away at boarding. Unsure where to turn, he called me and I took a closer look at what airlines can require of sick patients.
We got to the airport about 30 minutes after Michael Dacanay called our office. Dacanay told me he was being refused a seat on an Asiana flight to Manila.
“They found out I had cancer and they told me I can’t fly on their airplane,” explained Dacanay.
Dacanay has stage-four bile duct cancer. He’s headed to Manila for alternative medicine and to see his sick father. About a week before his flight, Dacanay asked the airline what he would need from his doctor before taking off.
“She told me medical certificate as long as your doctor approves,” said Dacanay.
But when he showed up for his flight, he got a different story
“I can’t ride the plane. I have to get clearance from their headquarters from Korea,” said Dacanay.
My inquiry of airline staff went unanswered so I went to Asiana’s website. I couldn’t find cancer or Dacanay’s type of health situation on the airlines medical list for air travel.
As Dr. Shingo Chihara from the Virginia Mason Travel Health Clinic explained, most airlines have rules for passengers who are weak or sick. But the passenger’s doctor usually rules.
“If we feel they are not fit for travel we will say that,” said Dr. Chihara.
International passengers should also remember, the health care in their destination may not be able to help in an emergency.
“If there is that risk, it’s that do I really need to go at that time or can we postpone the trip,” explained Dr. Chihara.
In this case, Dacanay is healthy enough to travel. We spoke to Asiana Airlines and were told it needed Dacanay’s full medical work-up, completed on their form, for their doctors to approve. So we called Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and they helped him get the documents he needed and on the very next day, Asiana gave him the OK to fly.
Asiana issued the following statement:
Asiana Air is going by the rules established by the FAA which are the same rules for every airline that flies in the U.S. We want to make sure that everyone flies safely. If oxygen is needed we want to make sure the passenger has it. In this case, our doctors believed the passenger needed to oxygen so it was provided to him at a small cost.
Asiana Airlines provides guidance to ensure a healthy, safe trip for passengers who have a chronic disease or who are in poor health.
Passengers who need a doctor’s note
The in-flight environment is similar to that of the top of Mt. Halla located approx. 2000m above ground; where air pressure and oxygen tension is a slightly lower than on the ground. Healthy passengers have a very low risk of health issues in this in-flight environment, but if you have a disease or generally are in poor health, medical issues could arise due to changes in the environment. Therefore, if you have a chronic disease or are in poor health please discuss this with your doctor before the flight and carry necessary medicine, etc. with you at all times.
- For cardiovascular system patients like myocardial infarction, angina, cardiac insufficiency, etc or passengers who have had heart surgeries
- For patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, pneumonia, pulmonary edema, pneumothorax, and other respiratory system diseases
- Patients who have nervous system diseases like cerebral infarction, brain tumor, etc. or who have had brain surgery
- Passengers who have recently had surgery
- Passengers currently hospitalized or who have illness that requires consistent treatment
- In case of acute tract infections or infectious diseases
- In case of uncontrollable mental illness
- Travelers pregnant for more than 36 weeks
- Infants less than 1 week old
- If oxygen, stretcher or special medical device is required during flight
- How to submit a doctor’s note
When making a flight reservation, fill out the ‘special passengers transportation application,’ get a ‘doctor’s note on air travel’ from your doctor and submit them to Asiana Airlines 2 days before your flight, or 1 week in advance if you require an in-flight bed or oxygen device.
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