Bloomingdale rape victim gets reprieve on health care cut-off

By: Carson Chambers
BRANDON, Fla. - In a small meeting room in Brandon where budgets, shortfalls, and taxes are discussed, a group had an unusual meeting about a young woman’s health, her life, and the future of her family.
“I think she’s happy to see that people are trying,” said Gene Odom.
The attorney represents a mom whose daughter spends her days in a wheelchair. The 18-year old’s innocence and independence were stolen from her as she dropped off a book at the Bloomingdale library in 2008. She suffered life-altering injuries at the hands of an attacker that night who beat and raped her.
“This is a really big step for everybody to get together around one table, you know, with the family,” said Audie Canney, Senior Aide for State Senator Ronda Storms.
ABC Action News has closely tracked her story and struggles. This month there is another chapter to write her at-home healthcare was set to be cut-off. It’s the same month she turns 21-years old.
“The end goal is to keep her at home with her family where she belongs and her family wants her there and that’s what she wants,” Canney told ABC Action News.
Everyone in the room including local, state, and federal representatives want the same thing. Lawmakers like Kathy Castor and Ronda Storms are behind them.
Friday they have made headway. The Department of Children and Families, the agency paying for at-home care, agreed to a reprieve for up to 90-days. Medicaid will supplement the money.
But it’s an extension, not a solution.
“There are rules that we call red tape bureaucracy and with very rare exception, those kind of limit and define what we have access to in situation like this,” said Odom.
Yes, she may be that rare exception.

(Source: abcactionnews.com)

Major meeting of the minds scheduled to help Bloomingdale rape victim

By: Sarina Fazan
TAMPA - While no one in the public knows her name, agency heads from all over the state know her case well. She was an 18 year old girl whose innocence was stolen and life altered by a senseless attack in April 2008.
The young lady was dropping off a library book when she was raped and beaten so badly it left her with life-altering injuries.
ABC Action News has followed the victim’s care.  And, recently, a major blow.
Her in-home healthcare was set to end at the end of this month, because she turns 21.  Lawmakers, including Congresswoman Kathy Castor, have been pleading for some help.
Castor is in Washington and said, “This is a tragic case, and we have been doing everything possible to advocate for her and for her family.”
Castor has written dozens and dozens of letters asking for help, as has Senator Ronda Storms.
Storms’ office said a last-minute decision by Children Medical Services, the agency in charge of the girls care, has extended the deadline.
But Storms said this is the beginning of the fight, and she has gone one step further. This Friday, major heads of agency are coming together.  “The Department of Children and Familes, Agency for Health Care Administration or ACHA and the health department put it all together.  I said to them, ‘No cavalry is coming, no one is riding across the plains to help this family.  We are it.’”
But it will be a tough battle. Castor said it’s not a question of wanting to offer aid. The aid simply may not be there.  “This siutation highlights, unfortunately, the scarce resources that are available when it comes to Medicare and children on Medicaid. I don’t think that most of us understand that the proposed Republican cuts to Medicare and Medicaid will have dire consquences for our neighbors such as the victim of the Bloomingdale rape situtation.”
That is not stopping Storms and Castor. Action News also reached out to Attorney General Pam Bondi and U.S Senator Bill Nelson. They promised to try to help.
Nelson, who was pivotal in helping get care to the victim up until now said, “The Bible says ‘Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves.’  So, I’ll continue to plead her case.  Hopefully the state will continue her benefits.”
Read below a letter Nelson wrote to Governor Rick Scott.
Castor’s office has also reached out to Storm’s office and plans on sending a representative to the meeting on Friday.
If you would like to help, you can make a donation to the ‘Bloomingdale Rape Victim’ at any Suntrust branch.
***** See the letter to Governor Rick Scott from Senator Bill Nelson *****

(Source: abcactionnews.com)

State senator steps in to help Bloomingdale rape victim

By: Sarina Fazan
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. - You have never seen her face, but through pictures, you may have felt her pain. ABC Action News first brought you her struggles three years ago when mother of a teen brutally beaten and raped at the Bloomingdale library turned to the station asking for help with health insurance.
During that time, Action News contacted U.S. Senator Bill Nelson and then-Governor Charlie Crist who made sure she got the care she needed, until now.
The extensive coverage by Action News also allowed the community to get to know the victim and help her.
In Tallahassee, State Senator Ronda Storms said it’s why she was moved to take action again for this family
News leaked that three years of in home care that care would end on April the 22nd. That’s the victim’s 21st birthday, meaning she would be moved to an adult institution.
Storms was not going to allow that to happen. She along with her staff wrote numerous letters.
A spokesperson said after lengthy discussion between Storms and Children’s Medical Services, the agency will continue most of the current plan, until something can be worked out, Storms explained,
“We have been able to provide services for the nursing care and her physical needs however we are having difficulty cobbling together care for her occupational and speech therapy and those type of things,” she said.
But it’s a temporary fix and there is much more to do. Many are already in the family’s corner.
Representative Kathy Castor has written numerous letters seeking help, including pleas to Governor Rick Scott. In the meantime, Storms refuses to give up
“We are asking for people who maybe don’t have a relationship, but are still moved to help, to please stay tuned. We want to provide additional ways for people to contribute. They want to help, we will have that. As a mother and elected official to my constituents we want to do everything we can to help her and help her family and be a blessing,” Storms said.
“Sarina’s (Fazan) role has been pivotal and critical in this,” she added.
We have also called the Governor’s office numerous times and e-mailed, but there has been no response. But Attorney General Pam Bondi is looking into the case. Bondi was a prosecutor in Hillsborough county when the girl’s attacker was arrested. Bondi has her team looking into victims assistance funds.
For now, the victim’s family is breathing a sigh of relief. But it’s a small step in a long road.
There is a fund set up to help the victim. You can contribute at any SunTrust Bank.

(Source: abcactionnews.com)

2nd Annual BBQ/Music Fest Fundraiser

Attention all! We are having our 2nd annual BBQ/Music Fest Fundraiser for your neighborhood’s favorite girl on July 30th at E.G. Simmons Park :) Please consider helping us with the following: sponsors, donations, giveaways, and silent auction items. If you would like to help us pay for the meat for the BBQ please call APOLLO MEATS at (813) 645-2379 and ask for Steve. We have an account set-up there to take donations for the cost of the meat. We are estimating the meat will cost about $1,500. Thank you in advance!

Family of Bloomingdale library rape victim now must defend her against bureaucracy

By Alexandra Zayas, Times Staff Writer
In Print: Sunday, April 3, 2011

Stuck in the body he broke, she exists in a world of seemingly few pleasures: Hearing her sister’s voice each morning through her bedroom door; feeling her body lighten as a therapist swirls her in a swimming pool. But now, the Bloomingdale library rape victim could lose the little she has left. Since a highly publicized attack three Aprils ago damaged her brain and rendered her powerless over her body, the government has funded every aspect of her care, from the liquid meals her mother pours into her feeding tube to the home health aides who sit with her 24 hours a day, holding up her head, watching to ensure she doesn’t choke. That will change on April 22, the day she turns 21.

As an adult in the eyes of the state, she will leave the care of Children’s Medical Services. Her new adult Medicaid program won’t cover everything. She will lose hours of home health aide services. Her family will have to pay for more medical supplies.

The state could take care of her daily living expenses — in a nursing home.

That’s not home, her mother says. This is home: her pink room, decorated with photos and notes from her friends, within earshot of her mother and sister, who come in at all times of day to kiss and comfort her.

So her family scrambles to piecemeal her coverage, planning fundraisers and writing to state lawmakers hoping someone will come up with a creative solution — some type of waiver, some type of exception.

There is a better program — the Brain and Spinal Cord Injury program, which would cover much of what she gets now. She has been on the waiting list for two years.

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, wrote letters to state officials including Gov. Rick Scott, urging them to look at the family’s application.

“Allow her the dignity of care at home,” Castor wrote.

In Scott’s place, the Agency for Health Care Administration responded with a letter summarizing the young woman’s case history. The family gave the Times a copy of the letter. It lists her slated service options with no hint of a change and says funding hasn’t been available to add anyone on the waiting list to the program.

The governor did not respond to a request for comment.

State Sen. Ronda Storms, who has been working to cobble together resources ranging from home health aide hours to daily living supplies, says the young woman is third on the very long list. She qualifies for the program. It’s just a matter of time.

Amid it all, the young woman is speechless, unable to blink in direct response to a yes-or-no question. It’s unclear exactly what she understands.

But she seems to hear everything.

Often, she smiles, and her family interprets that as an affirmation of things that makes her happy: the Florida Gators, a friend’s visit, a dip in the pool.

Lately, she has developed another form of expression. She opens her mouth so big, her family fears her jaw will lock. Her lips form the shape of an O. Her mother interprets that as “no.”

Her mother takes it as a cue that she doesn’t want to hear about something. It happens when her family stresses about her funding. And it happened one recent afternoon when talk turned to the young man at the root of it all, 19-year-old Kendrick Morris.

His sentencing is set for May 20, for the rapes of both this young woman and an elderly day care worker. He can’t be sent to prison for life because of a recent Supreme Court decision declaring such terms unconstitutional for juveniles who committed a crime in which no one died.

During a ride in the family van, her mother began to talk about what she might say to him at his sentencing — that she forgives him, that she hopes he will one day find God, that she wants to walk up to him, shake his hand and place a cross around his neck as a reminder that there is still hope for his soul.

The young woman never wants to hear about the crime.

Her face grew long. Her eyes squinched. Her brow wrinkled.

Her mom stopped talking.

The van was silent as it carried them home.

Alexandra Zayas can be reached at azayas@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3354.

. FAST FACTS

How to help

To make a donation, go to any SunTrust Bank and indicate that the money is for the Bloomingdale Library Assault Victim. Or mail a check, payable to Bloomingdale Library Assault Victim, to: SunTrust Bank, Special Handling Department,

P.O. Box 27572, Richmond, VA 23261-7572.

For other offers of assistance, contact family friend Cheryl Zemina at jzemina@aol.com.

Bloomingdale rape victim could lose her healthcare

 
Tampa, Florida -  She was savagely beaten and left to die. Her skull was crushed, she was raped and left all alone in the dark. The victim of the Bloomingdale Library rape case survived that night, but her life was changed forever.

Her attacker, Kendrick Morris, was found guilty of the crime and is now serving time in prison. While the family is pleased that justice was served, what they are dealing with now is unfathomable.

Their daughter, who was 18-years-old when she endured the unspeakable torture, is now in danger of having her medicaid benefits revoked. Sadly, it’s the result of bureaucracy. She will age out of the system when she’s 21 and will lose her current benefits provided by Children’s Medical Services, a state program.  Her longtime caretaker, Ashley Waring says, “How can she survive at home with no medical supplies.  It’s just, I don’t’ see how it’s fair, just because she’s 21.”

If she had been 17 when she was attacked, her healthcare would have continued.  The cruel irony is that she turned 18 just two days before she was raped. Waring told us, “For someone to need this so much…and you know, I don’t think it’s fair for them to lose anything.”

While this young woman’s family worries each and every day about their daughter having their medical benefits taken away, her attacker, Kendrick Morris, gets full healthcare coverage in prison. Waring goes on to say, “I’m hoping the community and the state will come together and make something work, pull some strings, and help her get what she needs.”

Representative Kathy Castor personally wrote a letter to Governor RIck Scott on February 28th pleading with him to look into the case. So far, he hasn’t responded. He would make the final decision as to whether or not she gets a waiver to stay in the system. U.S. Senator Bill Nelson has also contacted the family, in addition to State Senator Rhonda Storms, all in an effort to try and help the family.

This young woman’s family is hoping that she does not have to be placed in an assisted living facility, where she’ll be away from her mother and father, as well as they only home she’s ever known.

If you want to contact Governor Scott to urge him to make an exception in this young woman’s case, please click on the link below.

Link: Email Rick Scott 

Library rape victim about to be hurt by bureaucracy

Steve Otto

sotto@tampatrib.com

Published: March 27, 2011

Outside of close family and friends, the rest of us know her only as “the Bloomingdale library attack victim.”

You’ve read and heard the stories about how she was attacked, raped and beaten that night in April 2008. She was left to die in the dark behind the book drop.

But she did not die. She was still alive when they found her. Her body shattered, she was taken to Tampa General, where a coma was induced. Following that, she has been unable to speak, see, use her arms or legs or sit up without assistance.

She finally went home and has been receiving care through Children’s Medical Services.

Last year, her attacker was found guilty and is in a cell awaiting sentencing. Time moves slowly in the system.

But time also moves on in the world of the young woman.

Next month she will turn 21. It’s a time of life that not too long ago seemed so full of promise for this bright and beautiful woman. She was an outstanding student. Her future was limitless and you only can imagine what it would have been like on her coming 21st birthday as she came home from one of the great universities she could have attended.

Instead, her family anticipates the birthday with dread.

Their daughter was attacked two days after her 18th birthday. That is important because, by Medicaid rules, she will be transitioned from CMS to adult Medicaid services.

Under those rules, the only complete medical care provided is through a nursing home.

I wrote about this recently and about how a small group of volunteers was working to get some kind — any kind — of waiver to get her the continuing help she is going to require and allow her to remain at home with her parents, who both have disabilities of their own.

As you already know or could have guessed, options and funding resources are scarce. One item the group is after is a shower commode chair. There is much more and it is a long list, but you get the idea.

The family and her supporters would like an exception to something called the Brain and Spinal Cord Injury Program. She has been on the potential waiver list for two years but there seems to be little movement.

The group’s members have written and appealed to U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa. Castor has written a letter of her own. They also have gone to U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla. They’ve talked to lobbyists in Tallahassee and sent formal appeals to the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA), asking for a waiver.

Everything has been denied. About their last chance seems to be Gov. Rick Scott stepping in, although the rules on that happening are a little hazy.

I don’t know the answer. The twisting corridors and murky rules of health care with its agencies and bureaucracies are daunting. All I know is there is a young woman whose life has been salvaged, and there is a family that desperately is fighting at least to keep her close to home, where she can be loved as well as cared for.

Maybe someone out there who understands this system better than the small group that is trying so hard has an answer. I’m betting there is one. Call or email me with any thoughts

(Source: www2.tbo.com)