Elderly couple's murder-suicide stems from health care costs

FERNDALE, Wash. – An elderly couple were found dead in an apparent murder-suicide with notes left behind that lead police to believe high health care costs was the cause of their actions.

The 77-year-old man called 911 in Ferndale (Wash.) on Wednesday morning and said, "I am going to shoot myself," then told the dispatcher they would find the bodies of him and his wife in the front bedroom.

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Police responded to the scene and found the man and his 76-year-old wife dead from gunshot wounds, KCPQ reports.

Notes found in the home shed light on the woman's medical issues and the couple's inability to pay for her health care.

“It is very tragic that one of our senior citizens would find himself in such desperate circumstances where he felt murder and suicide were the only option,” Whatcom County Sheriff Bill Elfo said. “Help is always available with a call to 911.”