Name of Victim: Chase Hayles
Age of Victim: 37
Sex of Victim: Male
What Is This Testimony About: Hospital Protocol Death, Other Institutional Betrayal
State: TX
Did the victim survive? No
Date of death? 02/18/2026
Name of Hospital(s) victim was admitted to (List All that apply): Houston Methodist West
Contact Name: Karen Hayles
Relationship to Victim: Mother
Was the victim a military Veteran? No
Was the victim considered special needs, or did they have any kind of disability? No
Was the victim admitted to the hospital? Yes
County Hospital is located in: Harris
Date Admitted: 12/08/2020
Was the victim isolated at any time during hospitalization? Yes
Was the victim or family pressured to sign a Do Not Resuscitate? No
Was the victim deprived of food and water while in the hospital? Yes
Was victim placed on a ventilator? Yes
What medications were administered to the victim by doctors or hospital staff?
Anxiety Medications, Blood Pressure Medications, Gabapentin, Pain Killers, Remdesivir, Steroids
What medications did the hospital explicitly refuse to administer to the victim?
Hydroxychloroquine, Ivermectin, Monoclonal Antibodies, Zinc
Has this incident been reported to any agency such as VAERS, HHS, JACHO, Medical Board or others? No
Would you be interested in participating in podcasts or other media? Yes
He Survived the Hospital—But the Protocol Took His Health, His Future, and Ultimately His Life
At 33 years old, Chase Hayles had already overcome more than most people face in a lifetime. Diagnosed with leukemia at 13, he survived childhood cancer and a bone marrow transplant, then grew into an active, talented young man. He spent hours at the gym, climbed rocks, worked as a professional muralist, and filled his life with friends. By 2020, he had a job, a home, and a fiancée. His future was finally unfolding.
Then he entered a Texas hospital with respiratory problems and came home to a life he no longer recognized.
Chase had preexisting kidney damage from childhood cancer treatment. Six months earlier, when he contracted COVID, another hospital had taken that vulnerability seriously. He received plasma antibodies, improved almost overnight, and returned home within three days.
When Chase was hospitalized again in December 2020, repeated nasal-swab tests reportedly showed that he did not have COVID. His mother, Karen, camped outside the ICU, stopping doctors and nurses for updates and repeatedly warning them: Do not give him antiviral medications or Remdesivir. His kidneys could not withstand it.
A bronchial biopsy later detected what Karen was told were dead viral cells remaining from his earlier infection—not an active COVID infection. She again explicitly objected to Remdesivir and requested steroids and monoclonal antibodies instead. Staff assured her that she did not need to worry because Chase did not have COVID.
Chase was isolated from his family and eventually intubated. After he was removed from the ventilator and transferred to a continuing-care hospital, an admitting nurse revealed the truth: Chase had already received all the Remdesivir the hospital could give him.
Karen was stunned. The treatment she had repeatedly opposed, and had been assured he would not receive, had apparently been administered while her son was intubated and unable to provide meaningful consent.
The outcome Karen had feared became reality: Chase lost his remaining kidney function.
He survived the hospitalization, but survival did not mean restoration. Chase lost his job, his fiancée, and his home. A fiercely independent young man was forced to move back in with his mother. The athlete who once spent hours in the gym could no longer exercise as before. Three days every week were consumed by dialysis, followed by hours of overwhelming exhaustion.
For years, Chase and his family fought for a kidney transplant. One potential kidney proved unusable. Transplant programs closed or rejected him for circumstances beyond his control. In 2025, a MRSA infection weakened his heart. Fluid accumulated in his lungs, making recovery even harder. As his health deteriorated, he lost approximately 70 pounds. A feeding tube was finally placed shortly before his death, but complications prevented adequate nutrition.
In February 2026, Chase died at just 37 years old. His death certificate listed multiple-organ failure.
The hospital did not take Chase’s life all at once. He walked out alive but, the unauthorized treatment destroyed his kidneys and began a prolonged decline that stripped away his independence, livelihood, relationships, health, and future before ultimately taking his life.
Yet Chase was never merely a patient or a statistic. He was an artist, a devoted uncle, a loyal friend, and a deeply spiritual man. At his memorial, person after person spoke about how Chase had helped them and strengthened their faith. Even his therapist wondered aloud who had truly been helping whom.
Karen believes her son was failed by a system that isolated him, disregarded her warnings, denied the treatment choices she requested, and administered the very drug she feared would destroy his kidneys. She is speaking now because surviving a hospital protocol does not always mean escaping its consequences. Sometimes the damage follows a person’s home and continues for years.
Betrayal Project USA is a victim-led organization documenting these experiences, demanding reform and accountability, and building a community of support for those who have suffered institutional betrayal. These egregious violations of human dignity must be exposed and stopped.
If you or a loved one has been harmed by COVID-related protocols, shots, or policies, please document your story at betrayalprojectusa.org. Share Chase’s story so that what happened to him can never be dismissed, forgotten, or repeated.
