THE INJURY LAWYER DIRECTORY BLOG

Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) made a statement on Monday criticizing the way the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has handled its decision-making over the diabetes drug Avandia in light of two recent studies. These studies, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, demonstrated that Avandia led to an increased risk of stroke, heart failure, and death in patients over the age of 65.

These studies support a growing body of evidence from previous analyses of Avandia which claim the drug poses a significant danger to consumers, especially when compared with similar alternatives. As a result, DeLauro has urged the FDA to remove Avandia from the market.

Next month, a federal hearing will be held to determine whether Avandia can remain on the market. The information provided in these two studies does not bode well for Avandia’s long-term survival. In one of the studies released on Monday, Avandia was determined to increase the risk of heart attacks by 28-39% compared with comparable alternative diabetes drugs. The other study found Avandia to increase the risk of stroke by 27%, heart failure by 25%, and death by 13% compared with alternative treatment methods.

If you or a loved one has suffered an injury from taking the diabetes drug Avandia, you may be entitled to receive compensation through a defective drug lawsuit. An experienced pharmaceutical injury lawyer can help you with the filing of your claim.

If you have an Avandia claim in the New York or New Jersey area, please contact the experienced defective drug attorneys at Trief & Olk today to schedule your free initial consultation.

A New York jury has ordered Merck to pay $8 million in damages in a defective drug lawsuit alleging that their product, Fosamax, caused a 72-year-old woman to develop osteonecrosis of the jaw. It is the second Fosamax lawsuit to reach a verdict, and the first to award damages to the plaintiff. Merck had won the only other Fosamax claim to reach a verdict back in May.

The jury found Fosamax to be defectively designed and unreasonably dangerous. They awarded the plaintiff $3 million more than she requested. Merck plans to ask the judge to throw out the verdict, claiming the jury’s verdict and damage award did not align with the evidence. If the verdict is not set aside, Merck plans to file an appeal.

Currently, there are approximately 978 defective drug claims pending against Merck for injuries associated with taking Fosamax. Some of these are class action cases, containing multiple plaintiffs. There have been numerous reports of patients developing osteonecrosis of the jaw from taking the popular osteoporosis drug.

If you have suffered an injury from taking Fosamax, you may be entitled to receive compensation for your damages. An experienced defective drug attorney can help protect your rights in court.

If you have a Fosamax claim, please contact the experienced pharmaceutical injury attorneys at Schlichter, Bogard & Denton today to schedule your free initial consultation. Schlicthter, Bogard & Denton serves clients nationwide.

A Florida woman has filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against her doctor after she suffered severe burn injuries during a botched laser hair removal procedure. The procedure was performed to remove hair in her underarm region.

One of the doctor’s technicians conducted the treatment while under his supervision. According to the woman’s attorney, she experienced a burning sensation immediately. However, neither the doctor nor his technician noticed that the laser was burning her skin. This failure to detect a serious problem with the procedure led to far more serious burn injuries than would have occurred had they responded to the situation quickly and appropriately.

The woman required two separate visits to a Miami hospital for treatment after her burn injuries.

The medical malpractice lawsuit alleges the doctor failed to provide an acceptable standard of care, never ensured the process was sterile, and permitted an unlicensed technician to perform the procedure. She is seeking $15,000 in damages.

If you have been injured by the negligent actions of a medical professional, you may be entitled to receive compensation for your damages. An experienced medical malpractice attorney can help ensure your rights are protected in court.

If you have a medical malpractice claim in the West Palm Beach, Florida area, please contact experienced Florida medical malpractice attorney Craig Goldenfarb today to schedule your free initial consultation.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled against Ortho Biotech Products, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, in an appeal attempting to prevent a qui tam lawsuit against them from moving forward. The whistleblower case was filed by Mark Eugene Duxbury, a former employee who alleges the company provided kickbacks to doctors for prescribing the anemia drug, Procrit.

According to Duxbury, the kickbacks given to doctors have artificially boosted Ortho Biotech’s Medicare reimbursements, which is a violation of the U.S. False Claims Act. Ortho Biotech appealed the lawsuit, claiming Duxbury was unable to file his whistleblower claim because similar charges had been brought in another case.

While the False Claims Act only allows the first whistleblower that comes forward to file a claim, a federal appeals court in Boston initially ruled the case can move forward because Duxbury met the False Claims Act requirement of being an “original source” since he disclosed his information to the government before filing his claim. Ortho Biotech appealed this ruling all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, where it was ultimately rejected. The case Ortho Biotech v. United States ex rel. Duxbury, 09-654 will now be able to move forward without any further hindrances.

If you have a whistleblower claim in the Washington, D.C. area, please contact the qui tam lawyers at Chaikin, Sherman, Cammarata & Siegel, P.C. today to schedule your free initial consultation.

The Obama administration has approved $23.2 million in grants to government agencies and medical providers in 16 states. These grants are to be used for projects aimed at improving patient safety, which should ultimately reduce medical malpractice lawsuits.

There were 20 grants issued in total. Seven of them will fund three-year demonstration projects testing innovations including:

· Standardizing obstetrics procedures

· Offering patients immediate compensation in cases of medical malpractice instead of requiring them to initiate a costly lawsuit

The other 13 grants will fund one-year “planning” initiatives which limit the liability of doctors who can prove they followed state-endorsed standards of care.

The government hopes that these initiatives will curb the spiraling costs of medical malpractice lawsuits across the country, while at the same time boosting the quality of care received by patients. There is growing concern that fear of medical malpractice lawsuits has adversely impacted the way doctors and hospitals care for patients by:

· Discouraging hospitals from sharing information about mistakes which could prevent similar errors in the future

· Compelling doctors to practice “defensive” medicine, ordering a battery of tests for patients, regardless of the cost or need, in order to protect themselves from negligence claims down the road

Ultimately, government officials are hoping that these grants will help them determine whether these initiatives do in fact improve the quality of care and reduce preventable medical errors.

If you have a medical malpractice claim in the New York City area, please contact the attorneys at Trief & Olk today to schedule your initial consultation.

An official from Kroger has announced that the company is recalling select containers of their ice cream sold in stores across 17 states. The recall covers the Kroger Deluxe Chocolate Paradise Ice Cream, which contains tree nuts not listed on the package label.

Consumers who are allergic to these nuts may potentially face a life-threatening reaction if they eat the ice cream. Those without nut allergies are not at risk of injury. The ice cream was sold in 48 oz. containers and contained a “sell by” date of January 24, 2011. Only ice cream containers with that particular “sell by” date have been recalled.

The recalled ice cream containers have the UPC code 11110 50712 and were sold in the following states:

• South Carolina
• North Carolina
• Georgia
• Alabama
• Arkansas
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Michigan
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Ohio
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Virginia
• West Virginia

You may return the ice cream to the store where it was purchased for a full refund.

It is important to consult an experienced defective product lawyer if you have suffered an injury from eating the recalled Kroger ice cream. You may be entitled to receive compensation for your damages.

If you have a defective product claim in the Atlanta, Georgia area, please contact the experienced attorneys at Robbins & Associates, P.C. today to schedule your free initial consultation.

Jababa, a progressive funk/fusion jazz band from Boulder, Colorado, has joined the fight against nursing home abuse and neglect. To participate in Elder Abuse Awareness Day, the band performed a concert at Mesa Vista, an assisted living facility located in their home town of Boulder.

The concert occurred last Friday. Jababa played a 90 minute set during the afternoon banana split party. The event was organized by Spencer Tong, Mesa Vista’s Recreation Director. Approximately 25 residents attended the performance.

The concert was very successful, and many of the residents commented that they would be anxiously awaiting future performances from the instrumental band. The highlight of the afternoon came when one of the Mesa Vista residents joined Jababa, contributing a piano solo to one of their songs. After the show, the members of the band spent some time talking with the residents in attendance.

Elder Abuse Awareness Day is June 15^th. The purpose of the day is to raise awareness of the rampant nursing home abuse and neglect going on in many nursing homes and assisted living facilities across the nation. Due to understaffing, lack of training, and inadequate screening of staff members prior to employment, many elderly Americans become victims of physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, and neglect.

If you suspect that your loved one has been the victim of nursing home abuse and neglect, an experienced nursing home abuse attorney can help protect your loved one’s rights and hold the negligent facility accountable for their actions.

If you have a nursing home abuse claim in the Phoenix, Arizona area, please contact the attorneys at Cullan & Cullan, M.D., J.D. today to schedule your free initial consultation.

Written by Andrew Martin: professional blogger and guru of misfortune.

While BP has started paying out on claims to victims of the Gulf Coast oil rig accident, these payments have fallen short of providing many of these individuals and businesses with the relief they need during this time of financial hardship.

Individuals in the fishing, hotel, and tourism industries have been hit the hardest, as the BP oil spill has essentially prevented them from earning a living during the peak season for their business. Due to the massive scale of the oil spill, it is possible that many of these individuals will lose the entire summer season.

Many fishing boats have been kept in port by the oil spill, meaning that boat owners and deck hands are unable to earn any money at all. Many hotel owners and others in the tourism industry have felt the financial crunch as well; there are very few people that want to spend their summer vacation on an oil-marred beach.

To date, BP has established 25 claims offices along the Gulf Coast region and paid $46 million on approximately 17,500 claims. However, there are also roughly 17,500 more claims which have not been paid. They are currently stalled due to problems with documentation. As a result, these people have not received any financial relief at all.

Furthermore, the claim payments made by BP have not come close to compensating victims for their financial damages. Ship captains are receiving $5,000 a month and deckhands are receiving $2,500 per month. However, many ships typically earn $5,000 in a matter of days.

The problem runs much deeper than fishing industry individuals not making as much money as they are used to. Since it is a seasonal industry, these individuals count on the peak summer season to supply them with the majority of their income for the year. Since they are unable to work, they are in jeopardy of losing the bulk of their yearly income. This will make it very difficult to survive during the lean winter months.

Furthermore, many ship owners have recently invested large sums of money on boat repairs and upgrades prior to the peak summer season. To finance these repairs, many ship owners took out sizeable loans from the bank for which they must now make substantial monthly payments. Their $5,000 monthly claim check will hardly cover their operating expenses.

Several environmental law attorneys have also commented that by establishing this claims process, BP has effectively been able to delay the filing of many lawsuits, since victims are receiving some form of compensation. As a result, the oil company has taken control of the process away from our legal system, requiring victims to seek redress directly from the offending party. In this situation, it is important to have a third party that regulates the dispensing of compensation.

Due to the gross financial hardships created from the BP oil spill, it is crucial that you seek the assistance of an experienced oil rig accident attorney if you have experienced lost income or any other damages. By working with an attorney, you will ensure that your rights are properly protected.

If you have a BP oil spill claim, please contact the attorneys at Burg, Simpson, Eldredge, Hersh & Jardine, P.C. today to schedule your free initial consultation. We serve clients in Denver, Colorado and nationwide.

Written by Andrew Martin: professional blogger and guru of misfortune.

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has announced it has extended its investigation of McNeil PPC, a division of Johnson & Johnson, to cover an incident regarding a clandestine attempt to recall Motrin products in June 2009. The company was already under investigation for allegations by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding sloppy drug manufacturing processes.

The June 2009 incident is related to charges by the FDA that McNeil attempted to secretively remove defective Motrin products from stores without going through official recall protocol. The FDA discovered the scheme after obtaining a memo from McNeil instructing contract workers to buy up large quantities of Motrin products from stores.

According to the memo, the contract workers were to “act like regular customers while making these purchases. There must be no mention of this being a recalled product.” Once the FDA learned of the scheme, they asked McNeil to recall 88,000 Motrin tablets nationwide. The drug manufacturer complied with the request.

The allegations prompting the recall were associated with problems with the way the drug dissolved. The FDA labeled this a Class 2 recall, meaning there was minimal risk of severe injury or death, but some risk of “adverse events.”

McNeil never released a press release informing the public of this product recall. While this is not required of Class 2 recalls, it is nevertheless customary.

Congress has informed Johnson & Johnson that they must produce additional information and records about the incident by June 7. Currently, the FDA is trying to figure out if McNeil has violated federal regulations.

There have been several other high profile defective drug issues associated with McNeil products in the past year. McNeil has issued four recalls for over-the-counter products in the last eight months, and they recently shut down a Fort Washington, Pennsylvania plant due to quality and safety problems. The plant had been manufacturing the recalled children’s Tylenol products.

If you have suffered an injury from taking one of the recently recalled McNeil over-the-counter products, an experienced defective drug attorney can help you receive compensation for your damages.

If you have a defective drug claim in the Norfolk, Virginia area, please contact the attorneys at Kalfus & Nachman today to schedule your free initial consultation.

Written by Andrew Martin: professional blogger and guru of misfortune.

1980s child star Gary Coleman died over the weekend after suffering an intercranial hemorrhage at the age of 42. According to family members, Coleman’s brain injury was caused by a slip and fall accident at his home near Salt Lake City, Utah.

He was treated at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center where he spent two days on life support before dying on Friday afternoon.

Coleman was the star of the 80s sitcom Diff’rent Strokes where he played Arnold Jackson, a black child adopted by a wealthy white man in New York. For nearly a decade, his famous line, “Whatchoo talkin’ ’bout Willis?” was known by almost every child in the country.

During the height of his popularity on Diff’rent Strokes, Coleman starred in several other TV shows and movies, most notably the animated series The Gary Coleman Show. However, after Diff’rent Strokes ended in 1986, Coleman’s career began to sputter.

Over the past two decades, he received more notoriety for his troubled personal life than for his acting prowess. In 1989, he was involved in a lawsuit with his parents over their mismanagement of his trust fund. He received a $1.3 damage award in the suit. Ten years later, Coleman filed for bankruptcy.

In recent years, Coleman has been involved in several domestic violence issues resulting in arrests for disorderly conduct. In 2008, he was involved in an auto accident lawsuit after hitting a pedestrian outside of a Utah bowling alley.

Despite this litany of personal problems, Gary Coleman will always be best remembered for his role on Diff’rent Strokes. Currently, a generation of 80s children are mourning the loss of one of their most beloved childhood icons.

Due to the catastrophic nature of brain injuries, they often result in lofty medical expenses and long term care. If you have suffered a brain injury caused by the negligent actions of another, an experienced brain injury lawyer can help you receive the compensation necessary to cover these mounting medical expenses.

If you have a brain injury claim in the Phoenix, Arizona area, please contact the Mayro Law Firm today to schedule your free initial consultation.

Written by Andrew Martin: professional blogger and guru of misfortune.