Florida spends thousands in legal fees to deny a sick boy his blanket

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/16173120.htm

Kevin Estinfil is a badly disabled kid. He has severe cerebral palsy, is blind, has a shunt in his brain to drain excess fluid and has daily seizures. And his body can't control its own temperature. Kevin, who is 12, can get as cold as 93 or 94 degrees, and he can't communicate when he feels pain or discomfort.

What would help keep Kevin warm, his doctors say, are special thermal blankets, which cost $10 each. He needs about three a month, for a cost of about $360 a year. But for more than a year, the state Agency for Persons with Disabilities has refused to pay for them. The blankets, they say, ``have not been determined to be medically necessary.''

To make its case, the state has racked up thousands of dollars in legal fees fighting Kevin, who lost an appeal before a state hearing officer and is now appealing to the Third District Court of Appeal in Miami-Dade.

'I keep thinking, `It's a blanket. It's not like he's asking for a car,' '' said Lizel Gonzalez, Kevin's lawyer at Legal Services of Greater Miami. ``Give the kid a blanket. His life is hard enough.''

Really, that's all I can say. (X-DUer shaking head).

In any case, I bet the publicity helps him. Some nice company will donate them out of their goodness, or some company will donate them for the free publicity. Let's hope he gets them.

...very effective for heat retention. They retail for about $10 apiece, and I could see someone like this little boy going through at least three of them a month.

He wears a diaper and it's possible he could soil the blanket.
The blankets are not washable.

I'm sure they are erring on the side of having too many, rather than trying to get requisite another one from the state. As this article has shown, it's difficult to get it from the state of Florida.

I see "not disposable" but maybe that is the problem. And if they are mylar as the poster above says, maybe it flakes off or something if you wipe it too much.

I went back and re-read the article.
When I was responding to the previous post I did not have the article in front of me -- I had read it about 5 minutes before my response.
I put two seperate ideas together in my mind.

My apologies.
Thanks.

It's also possible that they get so badly soiled (bodily fluids, food, whatever) that they need to be washed flequently, and heavy washing will deteriorate blankets pretty quickly.

The review of Kevin's care plan was made by an employee of Maximus Inc., a private company that is under contract with the state to help lower costs in the state's developmental disabilities program.

The worker never examined Kevin, or even met him, records show, because the contract doesn't require it.


Another example of the...uh...benefits :sarcasm: of privatizing our state aid agencies.

to quote:
It feeds the rich, while it buries the poor.

you all do the same.

A couple of bucks in phone bills from each of us should do it.

Or is, there, maybe a place where I can send $360 and get him a year's of blankets?

I'll do that tomorrow, if someone can give me an address.

Redstone

have the kid set for life.

$360 is a lot of money for his parents, I'll bet, with all their other expenses, but I don't have a sick kid, so I'll gladly do without something that's not important in the overall scheme of things to keep this kid warm for a year.

Being warm is important.

Redstone

We've come to the point where only those who manage to get our story heralded in the news get the necessities.

That's ridiculous, and MUST change!

Thanks for having such a "warm heart". :)

Now, let's all raise hell about this and others in need!

all are helped.

After all, isn't that what we Evil Liberals believe in...the greater good?

We do. And that's why I'll NEVER understand how the word "Liberal" ever became a perjorative. I'm goddamn PROUD to be a liberal.

Again, your post was damn good and made a lot of sense.

Redstone

Anymore, it seems like people like to flame if there is any dissention at all.

I appreciate ALL your sentiments!!

Except.... I'm not a liberal... I'm a RADICAL! :hippie:

Radical actually means "from the root" or some such, and I think that's what it's about... getting to the root of problems, and needs, and solving them for the good of the people, rather than for what "sells".

I'm sure you've seen Kennedy's statement about why he was a liberal. Good to review it periodically.

One last thought... even as a "radical", by European standards, I'd be a lousy centrist. :rofl:

Thank you for lifting my spirits! :thumbsup:

everyone else to think.

Redstone

It was us "radicals" who started protesting against Viet Nam, before it was cool to do so.

It was us "radicals" who were the engine for the second wave of feminism and got many more rights for women. Not to mention those "radicals" before us who won us the vote.

It was us "radicals" who dared to think that we didn't *have* to "wait" for civil rights.. that it was a good time then.

I could go on... but....

:toast: to radicals!! :bounce:

You are very warm-hearted, and I truly believe with just a little more push on this thread, duers would come up with a truck load of blankets, and that would be fantastic!

But how do we accomplish the greater good of changing the policy to help all of the others in similar situations? Obviously we need to publicize every instance of this abuse that we hear. I live in a very red spot in a very red state, but most of the fundies I know would be appalled by this story; they will just never hear it on FOX so it doesn't exist.

Here in NO GA, we have many FLA part-time residents and I could lay some guilt on them, only it's the wrong time of year...they are all cozy warm while we are chilling.

I suggest some ltte to at least get this in front of the public. Any other ideas?

:toast: :bounce: :toast:

We really are all in this together....:pals:

This thread is an excellent thought-starter.. maybe something could come from this..?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=2875399&mesg_id=2875399

It does not appear his parents are paying for his expenses. Hopefully after this article he will get his blankets, if not through the state, then through donations.

Ninety pounds and chubby-cheeked, Kevin lives with 14 other severely disabled children at a specialized group home in North Miami Beach called Baby House, which is run by United Cerebral Palsy.

Alliance Home Care, a medical supply company that provides equipment to Baby House, has been giving Kevin thermal blankets free of charge -- along with diapers, feeding supplements, sterile water for his breathing tube and other equipment the state did agree to pay for but hasn't, said Carol Montiel, the nurse who runs Baby House.



United Cerebral Palsy of South Florida
http://www.ucpsouthflorida.org/
Residential homes
http://www.ucpsouthflorida.org/reshome.php
Intermediate care
http://www.ucpsouthflorida.org/intcare.php

I know blanket knitters and crocheters who would take this very personally and seriously. They knit for the Linus Project and Warm Up American and other charities that provide blankets to those in need.

Heck, shouldn't he have a nice blanket next his skin under the thermal one? Then the thermal one could last longer, and the other one can be washed. PM me anything you find, and I will call my contacts about this. I'd bet he's not the only kid in this situation.

I will keep an eye out for your post. I would like to contribute if I can.

Thank GOD he is leaving office soon.

Cold hearted son of a bitches! Man, this really gets my blood boiling. :Mad:

My country is a pathetic joke. :(

really so sad that Georgie screwed up his chances to be President and Papa Bush was weeping over that.

What frauds they all are....(inc. Scarborough)

but I'd like to contribute as well.

Fucking Repugnican cheap bastards.

Jeb Bush is an asshole, just like the rest of his family. Is the kid undocumented? It's legal to torture and deny services and incarcerate to just about anyone in this country for one reason or another, especially brown skinned children. Watch Legal Services of Greater Miami lose their funding now.

:wtf:

I can just hear the assholes now.

If you have Cerebal Palsy, everything is a medical necessity!!

Some People are so dumb I can not believe I share the air with them, UGH!!

pm me. I would be honored to contribute.

Unbelievable! Just keep those tax cuts coming...grrrr!

I'd love to send a contribution.

I read a story like this, and can't figure for the life of me why someone who would consider $360 to be the spare change in his couch doesn't just GIVE this kid the money.

he was interrogated for 3 or 4 days by the Gestapo, who were determined to establish that he was Jewish.

Though a child at the time, he knew then that the Nazis weren't playing with a full deck, and thought that if it was as characteristic as it seemed, they were doomed to lose the war. Imagine them interrogating a child for that long, to obtain such useful information for the prosecution of their war...

can donate to purchase blankets. I will let you know what I hear back.

His all caps - not mine.

http://pod01.prospero.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?msg=360.159&nav=messages&webtag=kr-miamitm&redirCnt=1

I AM THE PRES/CEO OF UNITED CEREBRAL PALSY OF SOUTH FLORIDA, WHO OPERATES THIS PROGRAM. I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF THOSE OF YOU WHO TOOK TIME TO REACT AND COMMENT ON THIS MATTER.

I WOULD LIKE TO ESPECAILLY THANK THOSE OF YOU THAT MADE A DONATION TO THIS PROGRAM. UNFORTUNATELY THIS SITUATION IS NOT ISOLATED. IT IS HAPPENING TO THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WITH DEVEOLMENTAL DISABLILITIES IN OUR STATE.

WE ARE HOPEFUL THAT THE NEW GOVERNOR WILL REVIEW THIS PROCESS AND MAKE IT RIGHT.

I WOULD ASK ALL OF YOU TO KEEP THIS MATTER IN MIND AND HELP US EDUCATE OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS THAT PEOPLES NEEDS ARE AS IMPORTANT TO US AS THE MANY OTHER PRIORITIES THE STATE HAS AND MAYBE MORE IMPORTANT.

UNITED CEREBRAL PALSY HAS BEEN PROVIDING NEEDED SERVICES TO SOUTH FLORIDA FOR ALMOST 60 YEARS. IT IS A VERY VALUABLE RESOURCE TO OUR COMMUNITY. WE TOUCH MANY PEOPLES LIVES EACH DAY. YOU, YOUR FAMILY, YOUR NEIGHBOR MAY NEED THIS HELP ONE DAY. THE STATE SYSTEM TO FUND OUR SERVICES IS BROKEN. AGAIN PLEASE EDUCATE YOUR LOCAL STATE OFFICIALS TO LOOK INTO THESE ATROCITIES.


THANKS AGAIN TO EVERYONE. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW YOU CAN HELP,
YOU CAN CONTACT BILL KINKER AT 305-325-0112 OR GO TO OUR WEB SITE AT UCPSOUTHFLORIDA.ORG.

Posted by: DR. JOE ANIELLO