Jefferson Airplane's Marty Balin suing NYC hospital for ruining his career
Former Jefferson Airplane co-lead-singer Marty Balin says a botched surgery left him with a paralyzed vocal cord and is ruining his music career, and he’s suing a NYC hospital because of it. New York Post reports:
Jefferson Airplane founder and lead singer Marty Balin is suing Mount Sinai Beth Israel, accusing its staff of botching his recovery from open-heart surgery, leading him to lose half his tongue, his vocal cords, left thumb and the mobility in his left hand.
Balin says in his Manhattan federal suit that he came to New York City from Florida to play a show at the Cutting Room on March 12, 2016, but the day before he was supposed to perform, he was admitted to the hospital ER with cardiac problems and didn’t end up leaving until three months later, in June, after having open-heart, triple-bypass and valve-replacement surgery.
The suit claims that the 17th Street branch of the hospital had been in the process of closing down and didn’t have proper staffing to care for Balin’s intensive recovery.
During his stay in the ICU, the 76-year-old — also a member of Jefferson Starship — had to have a tracheotomy, which came too late and was done improperly, resulting in the loss of half of his tongue and use of his vocal chords, the suit charges.
His wife, Susan Balin, complained to hospital staff about various concerns she had about her husband’s care, including the fact that his thumb was turning blue from an IV that was improperly placed and monitored, according to Balin’s lawyer.
The suit says Balin had to have his left thumb amputated and that his left hand is paralyzed because of the poorly cared-for IV. He also got bedsores during his stay, according to the suit.
Balin’s lawyers filed the suit in Manhattan on Thursday. The suit seeks unspecified damages.