Warm fuzzies: We reported yesterday that the state of Florida had actually gone to court — spending thousands of dollars — to deny Kevin Estinfil, a severely disabled 12-year-old $360 for thermal blankets his caretakers say he needs to maintain his health and comfort. The media coverage of Kevin’s plight brought forth an outpouring of money — and shame.
Floridians across the state opened their checkbooks Wednesday, including Gov.-elect Charlie Crist. Of course, it was Crist’s attorney general’s office that was fighting in court to deny the boy $360 a year for the blankets. In an admission of cluelessness that hearkens back to the heyday of Ronald Reagan — and one that seems sure to be a hallmark of his tenure as Florida’s governor — Crist said he was not aware of the litigation until he read about it Wednesday in The Miami Herald.
Crist said he ordered an immediate halt to the attorney general’s office’s role in the case, calling the legal fight “unconscionable.” Sorry, Charlie, but we think its unconscionable that you were not aware of what your office was doing (Big Sugar, take notes!), but thanks for ponying up a $360 check for another year’s worth of blankets for Kevin. Fell better now?
Of course, that still doesn’t resolve the $248 for surgical masks for Kevin’s caretakers the state still won’t pay for. Hey Charlie, why not reach for your checkbook while it’s still warm, or, better yet, why not call for an investigation of how such health-care travesties happen in Florida.
