The parents of Charlie Gard, whose legal battle to secure treatment for their terminally ill son, captured the attention of the world have met with Vice-President Mike Pence.
Connie Yates and Chris Gard met the Vice-President at the White House and he said after he said it was an ‘honor’ to have met the couple.
‘An honor to welcome the courageous parents of little Charlie Gard … to discuss the life and legacy of their son,’ he said in a tweet.
The Vice-President said it was an ‘honor’ to meet the ‘courageous’ Connie Yates and Chris Gard
Charlie Gard’s parents speak outside the High Court, London, after they ended their legal fight over treatment for the terminally-ill baby
‘Their parental love and devotion to their son is inspiring and a reminder of how precious all lives are.
Charlie suffered from a rare genetic condition which saw him in hospital for the majority of his short life.
His parents, fought a lengthy and emotional legal battle to take their severely ill baby son to the US for treatment, but were denied by judges.
The protracted legal battle saw the couple take their case to the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court – all of which ruled life support treatment should end and Charlie should be allowed to die with dignity.
Judges at the European Court of Human Rights refused to intervene in the case – and the couple said they had been denied their final wish to be able to take their son home to die and felt ‘let down’ following the lengthy legal battle.
Courts denied his parents the chance to bring their son home to die and he was taken from Great Ormond Street to a hospice.
The couple, of Bedfont, west London, ended their legal battle on July 24, in what they called the ‘most painful of decisions’ and their son was moved to a hospice on July 27 .
Supporters of Connie Yates and Chris Gard raised over £1.3 million and they have used the money to set up a foundation
At the time Connie Yates said: ‘Our beautiful little boy has gone, we are so proud of you.’
At the time of his death, Mr Pence tweeted: ‘Saddened to hear of the passing of Charlie Gard. Karen & I offer our prayers & condolences to his loving parents during this difficult time.’
Charlie’s plight saw hundreds of supporters – called Charlie’s Army – lending their voices and money to see the child given treatment, with £1.35 million raised on an online fund-raising site.
The money donated by the well-wishers has been used to set up a ‘Charlie Gard Foundation’ to help other children with rare diseases.
Pope Francis and US president Donald Trump weighed into the debate, with the Vatican saying the pontiff prayed for ‘their wish to accompany and treat their child until the end is not neglected’.