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EDMONTON – The Canadian Constitution Foundation (CCF) is fighting for the family of an Alberta teenager in a legal challenge to a government committee’s refusal to fund medically necessary surgery abroad after years-long delays.

Vienna Pedatella was diagnosed with idiopathic scoliosis at age 13. This meant her spine was curved like a S. Vienna followed her doctor’s recommendations but her condition continued to worsen. After waiting more than two years for surgery in Canada’s healthcare system – well beyond the generally recommended six-month timeframe for pediatric spinal surgery – the Pedatellas sought other options.

When the Pedatellas found a surgeon in the United States who could operate within weeks, they applied to Alberta’s Out-of-Country Health Services Program, which is designed to provide healthcare when it is unavailable in Canada, including because of excessive wait times. The committee refused funding. For Vienna’s long term health, her family took her for surgery anyway in August 2025.

Thanks to the surgery, Vienna’s scoliosis was cured. However, her parents were left with a nearly $200,000 bill. 

The Pedatellas appealed to an internal review committee but that appeal was rejected on the basis that Vienna could have kept waiting in Canada for an inferior surgery that would have left her with permanently reduced mobility. 

Now, with the help of the CCF and its donors, the Pedatellas have filed for judicial review. Vienna will ask the Court to overturn the decision and reimburse her family for the cost of the surgery. The CCF also seeks a ruling that the province violated Vienna’s rights to life and security of the person as protected by section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms because of the excessive wait.

The CCF’s petition calling on the provinces and territories to ensure no Canadian is forced to leave the country or face financial ruin to access medically necessary healthcare can be found here: theccf.ca/kidscantaffordtowait/. 

Janene Pedatella, Vienna’s mother, said the family would have preferred to stay in Canada but they had no choice but to look for other options. They found such an option at Saint Peter’s University Hospital in New Jersey. 

“She would get her scoliosis corrected, preserve her spine, and be recovered while still in the first semester of grade 12,” Janene said. “What else were we supposed to do?”

Janene notes that Vienna quickly returned to full activity including weightlifting and skiing, and she recently graduated high school with honours.

Josh Dehaas, Interim Litigation Director for the CCF, says that laws that prevent timely access to medically necessary care are a violation of patients’ rights.

“No patient should be forced to sit on a waiting list for surgery while they suffer in pain and their condition worsens,” Dehaas said. “Forcing a teenager to endure an excessive wait is especially cruel,” Dehaas added.

Interim Executive Director Christine Van Geyn said she was proud to support the case.

“The CCF is proud to fight for Canadian patients like Vienna who have been abandoned by our failing healthcare monopoly. This litigation puts the government on notice that patients need options when government healthcare fails,” she said.

The Pedatella family is being represented by Connor Fletcher and David de Vere, K.C., of Weir Bowen LLP on behalf of the CCF.

The CCF is a legal charity that fights for Canadians’ rights and freedoms.