State Assemblyman Ron Kim QNS fi le photo
TIMESLEDGER | 2 QNS.COM | MAY 22-28, 2020
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
Sandra Smith designs and
crafts handmade bags and
inspirational decor with a
speciality in pillows and desk
bins with personalized uplifting
messages. And during
the COID-19 pandemic, she
has added face masks to her
repertoire.
The Queens resident loves
creativity and entrepreneurship,
but she also has a
socially conscious focus.
Her Flushing-based business,
Sandra Smith LLC,
helps women, like her, who
have endured and escaped
hostile intimate partners.
The company recently donated
2 percent of every sale
to the National Coalition
Against Domestic Violence.
“Gifting a much-needed
mask to a fellow survivor is
our personal way of letting
them know that they are not
alone. This reminder is especially
important in these
harrowing times,” Smith
said. “Though I was able to
escape long-term abuse while
remaining in my residence
with my children, some
survivors of abuse are not
so lucky. To escape further
harm, they have little choice
but to relocate and find refuge
in a shelter, relying on
limited resources and the
goodwill of others to regain
their footing.”
In response to the COVID-
19 pandemic, Smith designed
reusable and washable 100
percent cotton face masks
that come in a variety of
colors and sizes.
Similar to her other products,
Smith and her team personalized
the face masks with
images, patterns, and phrases
such as “This too shall pass”
and “Queens strong.”
Prices for the face masks
run from $12 to $20 with
free shipping for purchases
greater than 50.
Smith recently donated
50 handmade face masks to a
Queens shelter run by Womankind,
a nonprofit that provides
a wide array of services
to survivors of intimate-partner
violence. The entrepreneur
plans to donate more
soon.
“Protecting themselves
and their children from
COVID-19 has become yet another
thing to worry about on
survivors’ journey to safety
and peace. We want our donation
of face masks to ease
their burden, even if by just a
little,” Smith said.
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by e-mail at cmohamed@
schnepsmedia.com or
by phone at (718) 260–4526.
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
State Assemblyman Ron
Kim is seeking legislation to
repeal a provision that was
included in New York state’s
newly approved budget that
prevents residents from suing
facilities including nursing
homes over some allegations
of negligence related to
the COVID-19 outbreak.
Kim’s legislation will repeal
Article 30-D of the Public
Health Law (Emergency
of Disaster Treatment Protection
Act), which protects
nursing home executives
with legal immunity.
The statute was codified
into law during the Fiscal
Year 2021 budget under New
York State Law by the Education,
Labor and Family Assistance
(ELFA) bill (A.9506/
S.7506).
“Behind closed doors and
in secrecy, nursing home
executives managed to push
Gov. Andrew Cuomo into
adding a provision in this
year’s budget that insulates
them from criminal or civil
liability during the COVID-
19 pandemic,” Kim said.
“The executives running the
nursing homes knew back
in mid-March that their facilities
could not keep their
residents safe; they sought
to protect their businesses
and themselves from their
expected negligence.”
Article 30-D of the Public
Health Law institutes severe
liability standards that essentially
insulate nursing
homes and their executive
leadership from criminal or
civil liability. Specifically,
liability would only pertain
to cases in which gross negligence,
reckless misconduct,
or instances where
intentional malfeasance has
occurred.
This allows for zero accountability
in cases of
standard negligence, which
have been pervasive during
the pandemic, according to
Kim. Moreover, the statute
prevents medical staff and
frontline workers in nursing
homes from safely coming
out against malpractices
they might observe from executive
leadership.
“Instead of granting
them immunity, Gov. Cuomo
should have fought to do everything
possible to indemnify
frontline workers and
volunteers and save the lives
of those trapped in nursing
homes exposed to COVID-
19,” Kim said. “I am deeply
disappointed and disturbed
by this new revelation.”
According to Kim, the provision
was disguised as a way
to recruit more volunteers
for healthcare facilities.
“The governor misled
workers into thinking that
Article 30-D of the Public
Health Law protected them
from lawsuits, but in reality,
the overwhelming third
party claims are against
facilities, not individuals,”
Kim said.
Kim and his other colleagues
voted against the
measure in the state budget.
State Assemblyman Dan
Quart (D-NY) said granting
nursing homes immunity
from civil liability
gives operators a license to
neglect and abuse already
vulnerable populations.
“Civil lawsuits are one
of the few tools available to
patients and families who
want to hold nursing homes
accountable for substandard
care,” Quart said. “A lack of
transparency and accountability,
especially in a time
of a pandemic, would put residents
at enormous risk.”
Jeremiah Frei-Pearson, of
Frei-Pearson & Garber, LLP,
who specializes in nursing
home reform litigation said,
“Class action reform litigation
forces unsafe nursing
homes to do better and, ultimately,
saves lives. I applaud
Assembly Member Kim and
his cosponsors for their leadership
in ensuring that nursing
homes do not get a free
pass when they unnecessarily
jeopardize their residents’
lives.”
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by e-mail at cmohamed@
schnepsmedia.com
or by phone at (718) 260–4526.
Queens entrepreneur Sandra Smith and her team created and
donated face masks with personalized messages to domestic
violence survivors. Photo by Cecelia Lucy Photography
Flushing entrepreneur
creates, donates face
masks to domestic
violence survivors
‘Disappointed and disturbed’
Queens lawmaker seeks to repeal immunity
law shielding nursing homes from lawsuits
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