• Chantel Giacalone awarded $29.5 million after 2013 allergic reaction left her quadriplegic with severe brain damage
• Jury found MedicWest Ambulance negligent for lacking required IV epinephrine during anaphylactic shock emergency
• Former actress and model now 35, requires 24-hour care, can only communicate with her eyes

LAS VEGAS (TDR) — A Las Vegas jury awarded nearly $30 million to the family of a model and actress who suffered catastrophic brain damage after medics failed to properly treat her allergic reaction to a peanut butter-infused pretzel at a 2013 convention.

Chantel Giacalone, now 35, was left quadriplegic and requires round-the-clock care following the Feb. 20, 2013 incident at the Mandalay Bay South Convention Center. The then-27-year-old was modeling clothes at a fashion trade show when a friend brought her frozen yogurt topped with a bite-sized pretzel, unaware it contained peanut butter.

Critical minutes without proper treatment

Giacalone, who had a known severe peanut allergy, immediately went into anaphylactic shock. She contacted her father, who instructed her to use her EpiPen, take Benadryl and seek emergency medical care.

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Her friend testified that when they reached the medic tent, Giacalone’s throat was closing and she had turned black and blue. Her rings appeared ready to burst off her swollen fingers. “Don’t let me die. I don’t want to die,” Giacalone repeatedly said.

Attorney Christian Morris argued that Giacalone lost oxygen to her brain for several critical minutes while under MedicWest Ambulance’s care. The company was operating the medic station that day but did not have IV epinephrine available, which is required by the Southern Nevada Health District for treating severe allergic reactions.

“IV epinephrine is required when a person’s allergic reaction is so severe that their circulatory system is about to collapse,” Morris told People. “She told them she was having an allergic reaction, she told them she was allergic to peanuts and had bitten into a pretzel, and she told them she was not having any relief from her epi-pen.”

Medics lacked required medication

The medics instead deployed intramuscular epinephrine, but intravenous treatment is required for full anaphylaxis. Morris argued the cost of the IV drug was only $2.42.

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“Instead of immediately giving her intramuscular epinephrine (which they did have in their bags) they checked her blood glucose because they thought she maybe had an altered mental status,” Morris said.

The requirement for IV epinephrine was established by a task force that MedicWest sits on, according to testimony during the three-week civil trial.

Company denies wrongdoing

MedicWest denied any wrongdoing and argued that Giacalone’s heightened sensitivity to peanuts made the outcome inevitable regardless of treatment. Their lawyers claimed the patient never lost consciousness while being treated by their two-person crew.

The jury disagreed, awarding the family $29.5 million on April 9, 2021, less than the $60 million in damages sought for medical expenses and emotional suffering.

Life forever altered

Before the incident, Giacalone was launching her acting career with roles in films including The Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations, Hollow Walls and Skylar. She had moved to Los Angeles to pursue her dreams.

Today, she lives in her parents’ Detroit dining room. Jack Giacalone, 70, and Deborah Giacalone, 59, provide 24-hour care for their quadriplegic daughter, who is fed through a tube and can only communicate by blinking her eyes. She is expected to live 20 more years.

“At least my daughter will be taken care of. I’m happy about that,” Jack said after the verdict. “All the anguish that we’ve been through for the last eight years, I’m not happy about. I just hope MedicWest changes their ways.”

“The truth came out,” he added. “Because what happened in that room was nothing. They let my daughter linger.”

“Every minute of Chantel’s life has been inextricably altered,” Morris said in closing arguments. “Every single minute since she walked into that medic room to a company that chose profits over patient care.”

The family plans to invest the settlement in Giacalone’s future care and a new home more conducive to her needs.

Should emergency medical services face harsher penalties when they fail to carry legally required life-saving medications?

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