Florida Senate - 2022 (NP) SB 74 By Senator Rodriguez 39-00189A-22 202274__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act for the relief of Harry Augustin Shumow by the 3 Public Health Trust of Miami-Dade County, d/b/a 4 Jackson Memorial Hospital; providing for an 5 appropriation to compensate him for injuries sustained 6 as a result of the negligence of an employee of the 7 Public Health Trust of Miami-Dade County; providing a 8 limitation on the payment of compensation and attorney 9 fees; providing an effective date. 10 11 WHEREAS, on August 22, 2017, 6-year-old Harry Augustin 12 Shumow, suffering from dehydration, fever, and lethargy, was 13 diagnosed with acute liver failure, hypoglycemia, dehydration, 14 and hypotension, as well as early signs of acute kidney injury, 15 and 16 WHEREAS, Harry was admitted to Jackson Memorial Hospital 17 and from approximately August 24, 2017, to September 8, 2017, 18 showed steady and significant physical, cognitive, and 19 neurological improvements, and 20 WHEREAS, on September 8, 2017, when a lab technician tested 21 Harry’s hemoglobin levels, they had decreased significantly 22 overnight, signaling the possibility of severe anemia, and 23 WHEREAS, mistakenly attributing the significant change in 24 hemoglobin levels to sample contamination, the lab technician 25 canceled the lab results and requested blood be redrawn from 26 Harry, and 27 WHEREAS, when Harry’s blood was retested approximately 12 28 hours later, the hemoglobin levels were even lower than the 29 first test, and it was discovered that Harry had been bleeding 30 internally from an earlier kidney biopsy procedure, and 31 WHEREAS, shortly thereafter, exhibiting low blood pressure 32 and a slowed heart rate, Harry went into cardiac arrest and did 33 not fully recover until approximately one hour later, and 34 WHEREAS, as a result of prolonged oxygen deprivation from 35 the cardiac arrest, Harry suffered severe hypoxic ischemic 36 encephalopathy, a type of brain injury, which resulted in 37 significant neurological disabilities that left Harry 38 quadriplegic, unable to verbally communicate, epileptic, and 39 subject to painful involuntary muscle spasms, among other 40 things, and 41 WHEREAS, Moses and Rose Shumow, as parents and natural 42 guardians of Harry, filed a lawsuit in the Circuit Court of the 43 Eleventh Judicial Circuit in and for Miami-Dade County under 44 case number 2019-15810-CA-01, alleging that the Public Health 45 Trust of Miami-Dade County, d/b/a Jackson Memorial Hospital, 46 through its employees, was the direct and proximate cause of the 47 injuries to Harry, and 48 WHEREAS, the Public Health Trust of Miami-Dade County has 49 agreed to settle Harry Augustin Shumow’s claim for $5.3 million, 50 $300,000 of which will be paid by the Public Health Trust of 51 Miami-Dade County pursuant to the statutory limits of liability 52 in s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, and the remaining $5 million of 53 which is conditioned upon the Legislature’s passage of a claim 54 bill, NOW, THEREFORE, 55 56 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 57 58 Section 1. The facts stated in the preamble to this act are 59 found and declared to be true. 60 Section 2. The Public Health Trust of Miami-Dade County, 61 d/b/a Jackson Memorial Hospital, is authorized and directed to 62 appropriate from funds not otherwise encumbered and to draw a 63 warrant in the sum of $5 million payable to the Special Needs 64 Trust created for the exclusive use and benefit of Harry 65 Augustin Shumow as compensation for injuries and damages 66 sustained. 67 Section 3. The amount paid by the Public Health Trust of 68 Miami-Dade County pursuant to s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, and 69 the amount awarded under this act are intended to provide the 70 sole compensation for all present and future claims arising out 71 of the factual situation described in this act which resulted in 72 injuries and damages to Harry Augustin Shumow. The total amount 73 paid for attorney fees relating to this claim may not exceed 25 74 percent of the total amount awarded under this act. 75 Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.