Twelve-year-old Billy Caldwell from Castlederg, Ireland returned home on Monday with his mother from a trip to Canada where they had acquired a six-month supply of cannabis oil to treat the boy’s life-threatening seizures. But after they landed, officials at London’ Heathrow Airport confiscated Billy’s medicine, putting him in immediate danger.
Only a matter of hours later, a video taken by Charlotte was posted to the Keep Billy Alive page on Facebook showing that Billy’s condition had already worsened.
“1:01 am this morning, Billy had a seizure,” they wrote. “Can everyone email Nick Hurd ASAP with the following subject header: Give Billy back his medication. nick.hurd.mp@parliament.uk.”
The Mirror calls-out PM on the issue
Unable to make another trip to Canada to get more oil, Billy’s condition has continued to decline, and his seizures have gotten worse and more frequent by the day.
Thursday night, Billy was admitted to Chelsea and St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington where he stayed until early Friday morning. Paramedics rushed Billy to Westminster Hospital after rescue medications were ineffective against a massive, intractable seizure.
But in the afternoon, Billy slipped from deep sleep into a series of increasingly intense seizures and was taken by ambulance to the emergency room at Great Osmond Street Hospital at 4:25 when medications had no effect.
“If Billy dies, which is looking increasingly possible, then the Home Office and Nick Hurd will be held completely accountable,” said Charlotte. “Every minute is one closer to him dying. Nick Hurd should come and watch this and then explain why Billy should be allowed to die.”
Billy became the first person in the UK to receive a prescription for medicinal cannabis under general practitioner, Brendan O’Hare. The Home Office ordered O’Hare to cease writing them for the child last month.
