MONROEVILLE, Pa. — There is a lot of time, planning and money that goes into a wedding. So, imagine one groom’s disappointment when he had to cancel his special day after being told he had COVID, only to later learn the results were wrong.
Michael and Inger Martin still have unused wedding decorations, some of them handmade, still sitting in their Monroeville home, after they had to call off their Aug. 1, 2020 wedding.
The wedding, set to host 125 guests, was set to be held at Boyce Park. But just days before the much-anticipated event, Michael, came down with a fever and a sore throat.
“My wife took my temperature. It was 103,” said Michael Martin.
Michael went to his PCP, UPMC Community Medicine in Monroeville, and was referred to UPMC Mercy South Side for a COVID test.
Martin also went to the emergency room, where a test there revealed he had strep throat, which was quickly treated with antibiotics.
The next day, a physician’s assistant from Michael’s PCP called him to say he tested positive for COVID.
“They told me at that point in time I need to cancel my wedding,” said Michael Martin.
The couple called their family and friends, explaining that the wedding was off.
“It was maybe a week and a half before the wedding,” said Inger Martin.
Next, the Martins canceled all their wedding vendors.
“All of these things were written in stone that if you don’t cancel in a certain amount of time, within 30 days, you aren’t getting a penny back,” said Michael Martin.
The Martins estimate they lost tens of thousands of dollars.
The next day, Martin’s PCP called back, saying the physician assistant read the computer screen incorrectly and that he didn’t have COVID.
“He said that she read the computer wrong or something, and I said, ‘I’m not sure what that means to me,’” said Martin.
The Martins ended up getting married on their original date in a much smaller ceremony, in front of less than 10 people.
Now, Michael Martin is suing UPMC Community Medicine, Primary Care Partners of Monroeville UPMC and the physician assistant who reported the incorrect positive test result.
“Try and rectify that mistake, not necessarily in health care per se, but the totality of that,” said Martin. “I just want accountability and acceptance and responsibility.”
Channel 11 reached out to UPMC for comment on the lawsuit, but a spokesman for UPMC told Channel 11 they couldn’t comment on pending litigation.
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