- President Donald Trump The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500 Subject: Request for a National Memorial and Accountability for COVID 19 Victims Dear Mr. President, We write to you on behalf of the family of Paul Michael Haider, and in unity with the more than one million American families who lost loved ones to COVID 19. We do so with respect, grief, and an urgent sense that the full truth of what occurred must be remembered, acknowledged, and never repeated. Paul Haider was a devoted husband, father, son, brother, and friend. He worked in healthcare for most of his career. He believed deeply in science, research, ethics, and facts. He was a patriot who loved this country and trusted that, in moments of crisis, the American healthcare system would deliver the best possible care to every citizen. That trust was broken. During Paul’s hospitalization, we witnessed firsthand how politics, rigid protocols, and institutional control over treatment decisions deprived him of what we believe was world class medical care. At a time when physicians across the country were reporting promise with certain off label and repurposed medications, Paul’s hospital categorically refused to allow those treatments to be administered, even when individual physicians quietly acknowledged their potential benefit. We were told, more than once, that if we could obtain certain medications ourselves, they would be willing to administer them. We did exactly that (at great emotional cost) only to be informed that hospital policy would not permit the medication to be used after all. This refusal stood firm even when we offered to sign full waivers of liability. We were left with the unmistakable impression that treatment decisions were being driven not solely by bedside medical judgment, but by external forces, including protocol mandates, institutional risk management, and the influence of pharmaceutical and regulatory structures that determined which medications could and could not be used within a given hospital system.
- As a family, we felt powerless. Even more devastating, Paul essentially died alone. Despite our pleas, despite our willingness to accept any and all risk, the hospital would not allow his family to be with him as he fought for his life over several months. For the most part, he passed away isolated, without the comfort of those who loved him most. For our family, this was not just loss, it was torture. Our beloved Paul did not lose his life only to a virus. He lost his rights as a patient, his right to advocacy, his right to compassionate presence, and his right to individualized care. Paul was an innocent American. He trusted the system. He followed the rules. And yet, when it mattered most, the system failed him. This must never happen again! We respectfully ask you to consider two actions of lasting national importance: 1.) The creation of a permanent national memorial (or network of memorials) dedicated to the American victims of COVID 19, so this catastrophe is never minimized, forgotten, or rewritten. 2.) A commitment to accountability and transparency regarding how medical decisions were made during the pandemic, especially when patients and families were barred from accessing care options, even at their own risk. Too many people today question how devastating this pandemic truly was simply because they did not personally know someone who died. That is precisely why remembrance matters. We do not forget wars, terrorist attacks, or historic atrocities - not to reopen wounds, but to protect future generations. This tragedy must be remembered with the same seriousness. Our family believes deeply that a national memorial would: • Honor the lives of those who died needlessly, like Paul • Validate the suffering of millions of American families • Serve as a permanent warning about fear-based medicine, institutional rigidity, and the human cost of denied care • Help ensure these mistakes are never repeated We believe in the leadership of this country. We believe in the presidency. We believed in it then, and we believe in it now. And Paul believed in it, too! Enclosed is a donation intended to help initiate a memorial effort - one that could ultimately honor not just Paul, but all Americans who suffered and died without a voice. We offer it not as a gesture of charity, but as a statement of hope that something meaningful and lasting can come from this tremendous loss. Please, do what you can to help make this happen. Respectfully, The Family of Paul Michael Haider The Paul Michael Haider Memorial Foundation (and on behalf of the more than one million American families who lost loved ones to COVID 19)
Response from POTUS
