Senate Bill sb0040c1
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Florida Senate - 2004 CS for SB 40
By the Committee on Health, Aging, and Long-Term Care; and
Senator Diaz de la Portilla
317-2193-04
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the South Broward Hospital
3 District; providing for the relief of the
4 family of Jeffrey Haider, deceased; providing
5 for an appropriation to compensate his family
6 for injuries and damages sustained by Jeffery
7 Haider as a result of the negligence of the
8 South Broward Hospital District; providing for
9 attorney's fees and costs; providing an
10 effective date.
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12 WHEREAS, in May 2000, Jeffrey Haider, a 45-year-old
13 man, began experiencing headaches, vomiting, fatigue,
14 dizziness, and behavioral changes, such as difficulty
15 concentrating and confusion, and
16 WHEREAS, as a result of these symptoms, Jeffrey Haider
17 saw several health care providers over a period of several
18 weeks, and
19 WHEREAS, an MRI of Jeffrey Haider was taken on May 31,
20 2000, and
21 WHEREAS, a radiologist and a neurologist determined
22 that Jeffrey Haider had a large mass within the right temporal
23 lobe which was 7 x 5 centimeters in size, and
24 WHEREAS, the mass was diagnosed as a brain tumor and
25 Jeffrey Haider was referred to a neurosurgeon, and
26 WHEREAS, the neurosurgeon who examined Jeffrey Haider
27 agreed that the patient had a right temporal lobe tumor and
28 recommended a craniotomy for resection of the tumor, and
29 WHEREAS, the procedure was performed on June 5, 2000,
30 and once the incisions in the area of the middle cerebral
31 artery were made, massive bleeding occurred, with blood
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Florida Senate - 2004 CS for SB 40
317-2193-04
1 gushing out of Jeffrey Haider's incisions under pulsating
2 pressure, and
3 WHEREAS, at this point the neurosurgeon realized that
4 the diagnosis of a tumor was incorrect and that Jeffrey Haider
5 had an aneurysm, and
6 WHEREAS, in fact, the neurosurgeon notes in his
7 operative report that "at this point, we felt that this
8 probably was an aneurysm. I brought in the radiologist who
9 felt that, in retrospect, this was a possibility," and
10 WHEREAS, an aneurysm is a permanent, abnormally
11 blood-filled dilation of a blood vessel, usually resulting
12 from the disease of a vessel wall, and it is common medical
13 knowledge that puncturing an aneurysm is the incorrect
14 treatment for a cerebral aneurysm, and
15 WHEREAS, the surgeon and the radiologist then summoned
16 an interventional radiologist who performed an angiogram, a
17 procedure that should have been ordered prior to the
18 operation, and
19 WHEREAS, the intraoperative angiogram revealed a giant
20 aneurysm filling from the right middle cerebral artery, and
21 WHEREAS, in an instance of further negligence on the
22 part of the South Broward Hospital District, the neurosurgeon
23 did not repair Jeffrey Haider's middle cerebral artery, but
24 instead controlled the bleeding from the aneurysm for about 45
25 minutes and then closed the dura and the skull, and then sent
26 Jeffrey Haider to the intensive care unit "with the idea of
27 reoperating at a later time," and
28 WHEREAS, however, within hours, Jeffrey Haider was
29 exhibiting dangerous neurological symptoms and was in need of
30 immediate repair of the aneurysm, and
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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2004 CS for SB 40
317-2193-04
1 WHEREAS, on June 6, 2000, the repair surgery was
2 commenced, and
3 WHEREAS, when Jeffrey Haider's brain was opened it was
4 noted to be "extremely swollen" and the "aneurysm was causing
5 tremendous pressure on the brain and herniating through the
6 craniotomy," and
7 WHEREAS, at that point the neurosurgeon compounded
8 Jeffrey Haider's condition by tearing off the M1 artery from
9 the junction of the aneurysm and the M2 artery so that he was
10 unable to perform an anastomosis to repair and join the
11 arteries, and
12 WHEREAS, Dr. Rodriquez, the neurosurgeon, states in his
13 operative report that "the larger M2 (artery), and even the
14 other one, were essentially on the aneurysm bulbous dilation
15 and I could not bring them together to do an anastomosis," and
16 WHEREAS, Jeffrey Haider has suffered astronomical
17 economic and noneconomic damages as a result of the treatment
18 he received from the South Broward Hospital District, and
19 WHEREAS, Jeffrey Haider was in a chronic vegetative
20 state and required 7-day-a-week, around-the-clock care, until
21 his death on January 1, 2004, NOW, THEREFORE,
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23 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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25 Section 1. The facts stated in the preamble to this
26 act are found and declared to be true.
27 Section 2. (1) The South Broward Hospital District is
28 authorized and directed to appropriate from funds of the
29 hospital district not otherwise appropriated and to draw a
30 warrant in the sum of $3,800,000, plus interest, as agreed to
31 by the claimant and the South Broward Hospital District,
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Florida Senate - 2004 CS for SB 40
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1 payable to Jeffrey Haider as compensation for injuries and
2 damages sustained. After payment of attorney's fees and costs,
3 the balance shall be paid into the guardianship account
4 established for Jeffrey Haider.
5 (2) The claimants, Alan Haider, Max Haider, Jonathan
6 Haider, and Jessica Haider, and the attorney for each of the
7 claimants shall, as a condition of payment, nominate a
8 financial institution doing business in this state, or an
9 independent individual who is not related to the claimants by
10 blood, marriage, or contract, to act as a trustee for an
11 irrevocable inter vivos trust established for the benefit of
12 each respective claimant. In addition, the proceeds that are
13 paid to Alan Haider, Max Haider, Jonathan Haider, and Jessica
14 Haider shall be placed in separate, irrevocable inter vivos
15 trusts, to be used solely for the health care, support,
16 maintenance, and education of each respective claimant until
17 that claimant is 30 years of age. The trustee must take into
18 consideration any other resources and income of the
19 beneficiary of a trust before disbursing any funds from a
20 trust to the claimant who is the beneficiary of that trust. To
21 that end, the trustee of the trusts must possess experience in
22 financial and trust management. The amount payable under this
23 section is inclusive of costs and attorney's fees, as limited
24 by section 768.28(8), Florida Statutes.
25 Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
26 law.
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Florida Senate - 2004 CS for SB 40
317-2193-04
1 STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
2 Senate Bill 40
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4 The title is revised to reflect the death of the claimant, Mr.
Haider. The bill requires the South Broward Hospital District
5 to pay the Haider family $3.8 million plus liquidated interest
of $46,437 in specified distributions: the wife of the
6 deceased gets 60 percent and the trust of each adult child
gets 10 percent. The bill provides requirements for the
7 creation of trusts for each of the adult children of Mr. and
Mrs. Haider to protect the awarded funds. The duration of each
8 trust is until each adult child reaches age 30. The bill
specifies qualifications for the trustee.
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