VINDICATED

Family at Center of Netflix’s ‘Take Care of Maya’ Win $210M Suit Against Hospital

Maya Kowalski was separated from her family after Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital contacted child welfare authorities, leading to her mom’s suicide, a lawsuit claimed.

A jury on Thursday found a Florida hospital liable in the death of Beata Kowalski, a woman who took her own life in 2017 after she was accused of child abuse by the facility, which was treating her 10-year-old for a mysterious health condition. The Tampa Bay Times reported that the Kowalski family was awarded more than $211 million in damages more than five years after they filed a lawsuit against the Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital for wrongful death, false imprisonment, medical malpractice, among other charges. The family’s ordeal, chronicled in the Netflix documentary Take Care of Maya, centered around Beata’s then-10-year-old daughter, Maya, who arrived at the hospital in 2016 with debilitating stomach pain. Hospital staff, suspicious of Beata’s request that Maya receive experimental ketamine treatments, eventually accused her of Munchausen by proxy and reported her to child welfare authorities, who placed Maya in state custody. Beata died by suicide after two months separated from her daughter.

If you or a loved one are struggling with suicidal thoughts, please reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by dialing or texting 988.