Kate Garraway was forced to take drastic measures to pay the bills after the death of Derek Draper

Good Morning Britain host Kate Garraway has revealed she had to dip into her pension to pay “overdue bills” following the death of her husband Derek Draper. The 57-year-old presenter returned to our screens this week and engaged in a candid chat with guest Lindy Kirk about her own health struggles, which saw her pay thousands out of pocket.

Lindy found herself in excruciating pain and in a wheelchair when she was told she would have to wait 18 months for a potentially life-changing operation, prompting her to pay £15,000 for private treatment – a difficult situation which Kate Garraway could relate to.

“You need every penny of that pension,” she commented, before revealing: “I do something similar.” The mother-of-two then revealed that she had to withdraw from her pension to cover her late husband’s medical expenses.

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Kate said: “I’ve just had to withdraw the tax-free part of my pension to pay late bills for my husband, who has now passed away.” Turning to Dr. Amir Khan, who was also in the studio, she added: “People have to do things they haven’t saved up for and some people don’t have any savings at all,” reports Lancs Live.

Kate has been open about her financial struggles, which have intensified during her husband Derek’s prolonged battle with Covid-19. Derek succumbed to the virus earlier this year aged 56, leaving Kate to cope with the staggering costs of his medical care, which have reached £16,000 a month for the necessary treatments and mobility therapy.

Speaking candidly about her financial struggles on the ITV morning show, Kate admitted she felt “ashamed” despite her lucrative career as she struggled to get her household finances under control. “I’m ashamed of being in debt,” she said.

Kate first shared the reality of the challenge in the documentary Kate Garraway: Derek’s Story, which chronicled the last year of Derek’s life and aired in March. She revealed the harsh reality: “because I have an incredible job that I love, it’s very well paid.”

She went on to compare her situation to those who provide care to others for little compensation: “I’m not a caregiver who travels miles and pays for her own transportation to go and help someone for minimum wage. I am a person who is very well paid. and so I’m ashamed that I didn’t make it work.”

Kate first drew attention to the seriousness of her situation in the documentary Kate Garraway: Derek’s Story, which aired in March and documented the last year of Derek’s life. She revealed the harsh truth: “Derek’s care costs more than my ITV salary and that’s before I pay a mortgage, before I pay any household bills, before I pay anything for the kids, so we’re in – a critical moment. “.

She concluded with a candid confession about her circumstances: “I’m in debt. I can’t make enough money to cover my debt because I’m looking after Derek and I can’t even use the money I have to support Derek’s recovery because it goes to the basics all the time.”

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