A man with a severe dairy allergy has filed a lawsuit against McDonald’s because of the allergic reaction he had after eating a Big Mac. When the man ordered a Big Mac meal on DoorDash from a McDonald's in New York City, he checked "No American Cheese,” reported The Daily Beast.
Charles Olsen, 28, had reportedly ordered this meal "multiple times before" on the same platform and from the same restaurant, without any issues, according to an attorney. But in February 2021, he knew something was off when he took a few bites of his Bic Mac.
A lawsuit filed in New York State Supreme Court stated that "he immediately felt like something wasn’t right" and "his throat began to itch and swell. He felt a burning sensation throughout his body."
According to the lawsuit, he told his girlfriend that there was clearly milk in his meal. He started struggling to breathe and was "covered in hives."
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The lawsuit also said the man's "whole body felt feverish. He developed a persistent cough, followed by wheezing. He also began gasping for air."
His girlfriend took him to the hospital, and he was "hypoxic and on the brink of needing intubation to save his life," according to the lawsuit.
He was admitted for anaphylaxis, a severe, life-threatening allergic reaction. Luckily, Olsen survived, but the experience was still "traumatic."
Olsen's attorney, Jory Lange, told The Daily Beast that the incident was "completely avoidable." Allergies are not uncommon, and modifying menu items is not always a matter of personal preference. Sometimes not paying close attention to the requests can result in an emergency.
"It’s really, really important for restaurants, that whenever a customer tells you, 'Hey, don’t include this particular ingredient in my order,’ that they honor it," Lange said, reported The Daily Beast. "Especially if it’s something like milk or cheese, which is one of the nine most common food allergens that leads to people having anaphylaxis and ending up in the emergency room."
When requesting the modification, there was no way for Olsen to indicate that his request was due to an allergy rather than a preference, according to his other attorney, Scott Harford.
In a statement shared with NBC News, Olsen said accommodating people who have allergies should be "simple." "Options aren’t included when making an order to indicate allergies, and the staff properly trained to handle such a simple thing," he said in the statement.
“No one should have to fear for their health when they’re just trying to eat a meal," he added.
