The family of the late Joan Rivers has settled with the clinic at the center of a medical malpractice lawsuit following the comedian’s death, attorneys for the family tell CNN.
Rivers died September 4, 2014, at the age of 81, a week after an appointment at Manhattan’s Yorkville Endoscopy clinic.
“In choosing to accept this settlement, I am able to put the legal aspects of my mother’s death behind me and ensure that those culpable for her death have accepted responsibility for their actions quickly and without equivocation,” daughter Melissa Rivers said in a statement.
The terms of the settlement are confidential, attorney Ben Rubinowitz said.
The lawsuit alleged missteps by the outpatient endoscopy facility and the physicians caring for Rivers during a 2014 procedure that the New York medical examiner said ultimately led to her death.
The comedian went to the medical center for a procedure to evaluate her “voice changes” and to determine what was causing her stomach reflux, according to the New York medical examiner.
During the procedure, Rivers had a laryngospasm, a spasm of the vocal cords that makes it difficult to breathe, according to an investigation into her death.
Her body was unable to take in enough oxygen and eventually her heart stopped delivering fresh oxygenated blood to her brain, which shut down.
The lawsuit claimed the clinic performed procedures on Rivers without her consent. The clinic denied doing so.
The clinic did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment.
“Moving forward, my focus will be to ensure that no one ever has to go through what my mother, Cooper and I went through and I will work towards ensuring higher safety standards in out-patient surgical clinics,” Rivers said.
