Nebraska funeral home discovers hospice patient was still alive hours after being declared dead

By JOSH FUNK
Associated Press

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a Nebraska funeral home discovered that a 74-year-old hospice patient who was declared dead by her nursing home was actually still alive. The Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office says says upon their shocking discovery on Monday, funeral home workers started CPR and called 911. The woman was rushed to a Lincoln hospital, where she died hours later. Chief Deputy Ben Houchin said Tuesday that he couldn’t “imagine their shock” at finding the woman was alive after putting her on the embalming table. He says investigators are looking into what happened, but hadn’t found evidence yet that any laws were broken.