The family of the late U.S. Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson say they’ve reached a resolution with Baylor Scott and White Health over her care before her death last year.
While the financial terms will remain private, Kirk Johnson says it will allow her legacy to live on in a newly formed foundation.
“We want her impact to still be felt in this community,” Johnson said.
Johnson says the launch of the Eddie Bernice Johnson Lives Foundation signals her impact will continue.
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Family attorney Les Weisbrod said Baylor Scott and White Health will contribute to the foundation in the form of an unspecified financial donation.
The announcement comes nearly six months after Weisbrod and Johnson’s son fought back tears during a news conference four days after the trailblazing lawmaker died.
Kirk Johnson said that his mother was left for an hour in a filthy bed at the Baylor Scott and White Institute for Rehabilitation in Dallas where she was supposed to be recovering from back surgery.
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Instead, she acquired an infection her family says ultimately took the life of the 89-year-old congressional icon on December 31.
“She was being unattended to,” Johnson said January 4. “She was screaming out in pain and for help.”
Weisbrod said Thursday after the initial news conference, Baylor Scott & White Health approached the family about contributing to Johnson’s foundation and renaming a nursing scholarship in her honor. He described the donation as “very generous.”
“Sometimes the court of public opinion can be more powerful than the court of law,” Weisbrod said.
“When we can do good deeds and avoid a lawsuit, that’s a win-win for everybody involved.”
He added he’s received assurances from Baylor that the rehabilitation facility is reviewing policies and procedures to ensure similar patient neglect doesn’t occur in the future.
Baylor Scott and White Health told NBC 5 in a statement that Eddie Bernice Johnson was a friend and champion to the communities it serves.
“She is an inspiration to all. It has long been our priority to help her life’s work live on. Working with her family, we are pleased to name a nursing scholarship program in her honor,” a spokesperson said.
Kirk Johnson says the family looks forward to being able to award grants to nonprofits that embody the spirit his mother championed in a five-decade career of public service.
“We are at peace,” Johnson said. “We have to accept God’s will but her initiatives, her interests will continue to live.”
