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Health

An 800-Pound Man Says He Was Denied Treatment at a Hospital Because He Ordered a Pizza

The man and his father are now looking for a new hospital in which he can safely get his weight down in preparation for gastric bypass surgery.

An NBC affiliate reports that Steven Assanti, a 778-pound man from Cranston, Rhode Island claims he was kicked out of a hospital for ordering a pizza.

Assanti, who is 33 and is said to suffer from an eating addiction, had been hospitalized so that he could quickly lose weight in a controlled environment. Doctors had hoped to help him get his weight down to around 550 pounds—a weight at which it would have been safe to give Assanti gastric bypass surgery.

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However, according to NBC 10, Assanti says that he violated the terms of his care by ordering a pizza. Once the hospital found out, he was ejected.

Assanti told the station that he understands his weight is an issue and claims to be addicted to eating. His father, Steven Veillette, told NBC, "If he comes home and I do get him up the stairs somehow, someway, he's going to go right back to his eating habits."

For now, Assanti and his father say they are looking for a new medical facility where he can safely get his weight down.

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Steven Assanti, who was kicked out of a hospital for ordering a pizza. Image via NBC 10 in Rhode Island