Alberta teen’s family sues government after nearly $200K out-of-country surgical bill

An Alberta teen’s family is heading to court in an effort to recoup nearly $200,000 they spent on out-of-country surgery after she waited more than two years in Canada’s health care system, claiming their daughters’ constitutional rights were violated.

In 2021, when Vienna Pedatella was 13 years old, she was diagnosed with idiopathic scoliosis, in which her spine was curved like the letter S. Despite inquiring about surgical options, she was told that bracing 23 hours a day for nine months, as well as physical therapy and strength training, were the better options.

“She would try to hide it with baggy shirts and just try to minimize being different,” her mother, Janene Pedatella told Global News.

“The hope was if she wore it compliantly, that when she went through her primary growth spurt that it would sort of help the spine to correct and it wouldn’t get worse — in fact, maybe it might get a little bit better.”

Her condition progressed to the point that she was referred to BC Children’s Hospital to see a specialist, where her and her family were told she had missed the window for a surgical procedure, known as “tethering,” that they believe would not only correct the issue, but allowed Vienna to continue with her active lifestyle. The surgeon told the family that they were too late for that procedure.

“We felt really let down,” her mom said. “I was very very gutted that day because what does that mean for her now? It means fusion if her curve gets worse.”

Vienna was told she would need spinal fusion, connecting two or more vertebrae together using metal rods, screws and bone grafts, which can cause issues with mobility and flexibility for patients. In Vienna’s case, that included 14 levels of vertebrae from the base of her neck, all the way to her lower back, fused.

On top of that, the Pedatellas were told the wait list for surgery was more than two years.

In the meantime, Vienna had another X-ray which showed her spine curve had grown from 40 degrees to nearly 70.

“When we went in May of 2025 and got her scanned and her curve had progressed to 67 degrees, it was like a trigger pulled,” she said. “I said to my husband, we can’t wait anymore.”

“I was in pain the majority of the day,” Vienna said. “I wasn’t getting enough sleep because I’d wake up in pain and then I couldn’t fall back asleep and I couldn’t really stand or walk without being in pain.”

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There were also concerns about her body position restricting her organs, and that the curve could progress even further.

“I thought I was getting better and then we found that it got significantly worse, which was terrifying and I was devastated,” Vienna said.

The family started looking out of country for options and found a doctor at St. Peter’s University Hospital in New Brunswick, N.J., who recommended anterior scoliosis correction (ASC), a procedure similar to the one offered in B.C., without an age restriction, which they believed could preserve Vienna’s mobility and allow her to return to full function.

After speaking with her family doctor and the surgeon, the decision was made to apply to Alberta’s Out-of-country Health Services Regulation for funding to cover the cost of the surgery in the United States.

“We met with the two doctors, and both said Vienna would be an ideal candidate,” Janene said.

The committee denied the request in July 2025.

Despite the decision, Vienna underwent ASC surgery in the United States in August of 2025 and paid the $199,074 hospital bill.

“We had to make a decision about what we were going to do,” Vienna’s mom said. “We bit the bullet and said this is her clearest path to getting her spine corrected and preserving her mobility.

“She would get her scoliosis corrected, preserve her spine, and be recovered while still in the first semester of Grade 12. What else were we supposed to do?”

Vienna quickly returned to full activity including weightlifting and skiing, and she recently graduated high school with honours.

The Pedatellas appealed to an internal review committee but were rejected on the basis that Vienna could have kept waiting in Canada for the spinal fusion surgery. Her case was dismissed in February 2026.

Now, with the help of the Canadian Constitution Foundation, the family has filed a judicial review, in hopes the court will overturn the decision and force the government to reimburse the family for the cost of the surgery.

The Canadian Constitution Foundation (CCF), a national charity dedicated to “defending the constitutionally protected rights and freedoms of Canadians, and to maintaining Canada’s constitution”, is also seeking a ruling that the province violated Vienna’s constitutional rights because of the excessive wait.

“We have a right in Canada under our constitution to life, liberty and security, and forcing patients to suffer in pain as their condition deteriorates because the government system can’t treat them, that engages your constitutional rights,” said Christine Van Geyn, interim executive director of the CCF.

“This, we hope, will serve as a precedent for other governments across Canada to honour their obligations, both their charter responsibilities, their constitutional responsibilities, but also their responsibilities that they have accepted under legislation that guarantees payment for out-of-service care when the government system fails.”

Global News reached out to the Ministry of Primary and Preventative Health Services, who said in a statement that they could not comment on the specific case because it was before the courts and involved the personal health information of an individual.

The ministry added that they recognize how difficult these situations are for families, “that’s why requests for out-of-country health care funding are decided by the Out-of-Country Health Services Committee, which is made up of physicians and medical experts, not government.”

The spokesperson also said that “treatments that are experimental, emerging, provided through a clinical trial or delivered as part of a research study are not eligible because they are still being evaluated for safety and effectiveness.”

Court documents obtained by Global News state that Vienna’s doctor provided information to prove that the ASC surgery is not “experimental”.

“We’re not talking about something that is experimental,” Janene told Global News. “We already do this procedure; we just don’t have anyone (in Canada) yet that has learned the technique to install multiple tethers and be able to treat any age of scoliosis.”

Vienna is doing well.

She was able to return to her active lifestyle and is hopeful to one day be a nurse, like the ones who cared for her while she was going through this.

While the family knows they may never be reimbursed for the surgery, they said it’s about so much more than just Vienna’s experience.

“I think I went from hiding it a lot to wanting to tell my story and hopefully help other people,” Vienna said.

“This is the safety valve program,” her mom added. “It exists for when you’ve waited too long and it exists for when you have a recommended standard of care, surgical option.

“What about the other Canadian kids who are on the wait list who are not getting access to the surgeries they need?”

The provincial government said it is reviewing the out-of-country health services program to ensure it “continues to meet the needs of Albertans as patient needs, medical knowledge and treatment options evolve,” adding that the review, “will help us determine what changes are needed to better support patients while maintaining a consistent, independent and expert-led approach to decision-making.”

The family expects the judicial review to go before the courts in 2027.