The medical director at Yorkville Endoscopy Center was fired following a throat procedure that led to the death of comedienne Joan Rivers, ABC News reported. Rivers died on Sept. 4 at the age of 81, one week after she was rushed to Mount Sinai Hospital.
The clinic told ABC in a statement that Dr. Lawrence Cohen "is not currently performing procedures at Yorkville Endoscopy; nor is he currently serving as medical director." Yorkville Endoscopy did not specify why Cohen was fired, but a source told ABC that it was because he allegedly allowed another doctor, who was not affiliated with the clinic, to perform a biopsy on Rivers.
It was previously reported that Rivers was at the clinic for "a diagnostic procedure [to] see why her voice had gotten raspy" and when Cohen, who was performing the endoscopy, found "something" on her vocal chords, another doctor who Rivers brought with her asked if he could perform a biopsy. The clinic reportedly allowed him to do so and Rivers' vocal chords snapped shut, cutting off her air supply.
"A biopsy like that should only be done in a hospital setting," a source told the Daily News. "If she had been in a hospital when it happened, she might have been OK."
The "Fashion Police" cohost signed off on the endoscopy, but not the biopsy, according to the Daily News.
"He asked, and they let him," the source added. "A huge no-no."
Rivers was rushed to Mount Sinai and placed on life support, but never recovered. One week after being hospitalized, she died. In a previous statement released Thursday (Sept. 11), Yorkville Endoscopy denied that an unplanned biopsy was performed at the clinic. They also slammed reports that the late comedienne was under general anesthesia while she having the endoscopy.
"General anesthesia has never been administered at Yorkville Endoscopy. They type of sedation used at Yorkville Endoscopy is monitored anesthesia care. Our anesthesiologists utilize light to moderate sedation," the statement read.
