Famed astronaut Neil Armstrong’s family reportedly received $6 million from an Ohio hospital following allegations that medical errors led to his August 2012 death.
The Mercy Health system, which defended the care provided to Armstrong, paid his family a $6 million settlement to avoid public litigation, according to documents obtained and authenticated by the New York Times. Armstrong died from “complications resulting from cardiovascular procedures” in Cincinnati, Ohio at the age of 82.
After a successful cardiac bypass surgery in early August of 2012, Armstrong “began to bleed internally, and his blood pressure dropped” when nurses removed temporary wires from his pacemaker. Investigators say the hospital’s decision to take Armstrong to a catheterization lab to drain the blood instead of an operating room resulted in his death.
The late astronaut’s two sons, Mark and Rick, accused Armstrong’s doctors of medical malpractice and launched a lawsuit. Wendy Armstrong, a lawyer and wife of Mark, told the hospital in July 2014 that the family would publicize the lawsuit if they failed to pay the settlement. She claimed the family would “net a monetary gain far in excess” of the settlement if Mark and Rick decided to publicize the story or sign a book deal.
When the settlement was paid, the family agreed to remain silent.
“We are all under nondisclosure agreements through the courts — everyone associated with the family is — so no one is allowed to say anything,” Karen Armstrong, Rick’s former wife said.
According to the New York Times, Mark and Rick received $2.6 million each from the settlement. Dean Armstrong and June Hoffman, the astronaut’s brother and sister, each got $250,000. His six grandchildren each received $24,000.
Armstrong’s widow, Carol, did not participate in the lawsuit. In an interview she said, “I wasn’t part of it. I want that for the record.”
This news comes just days after tributes around the world celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission, an American effort that made Armstrong the first man to walk on the moon.
