Random House Recall Children's Books. Random House Inc. has recalled about 39,000 copies of Monsters In The Closet children's board books. The snap that secures the book could detach, posing a choking hazard to young children. CPSC and Random House have not received any reports of injuries involving this book. This recall is being … [Read more...]
Lawsuit Charges Blood Center With Deceptive Practices
A Lawsuit Filed Accuses Blood Center Of Unlawful Practices. A lawsuit filed Tuesday accuses the Community Blood Center of unlawful, deceptive and negligent practices in the treatment of a cancer patient, KMBC 9 News' Peggy Breit reported. The case involves a procedure no longer done by the center. For a time, the blood center was … [Read more...]
Family Receives $54M in Crash Settlement
A Family Was Awarded In A Car Crash Settlement. A Carol Stream family was awarded more than $54 million for severe injuries suffered when their car was struck by a train a year ago. After deliberating about four hours, a Cook County jury on Friday ordered the Canadian National/Illinois Central Railroad to pay Fidel and Francisca … [Read more...]
Lead Poisoning An Imminent Threat
Lead Poisoning Among Children. The city of Durham won part of a federal grant to help alleviate lead poisoning among low-income children. Lead poisoning can lead to a loss of I.Q. and to growth problems,ardation and even death. The money was intended to educate and help homeowners and landlords pay for lead removal. Today, the $2.4 … [Read more...]
Care Home Owner Faces More Legal Trouble
Nursing Home Owner Is Charged With Abuse. The Greenville nursing home owner who is charged with abusing her patients could also face civil lawsuits from many of those people. • Get The Latest Weather • Sign Up For Daily News Flashes • I-385 Construction: Keep Up With The Latest • Find A New Car For The New Year Essie Wright … [Read more...]
Don’t Become a Medical Blunder
Medication Errors From Medical Blunder. ILENE CORINA is still mourning the death of her three-year-old son. Back in 1990, she took him to Syosset Hospital in New York for a routine tonsillectomy. A couple of days after the surgery Corina noticed blood in her son's mouth. Concerned, Corina brought him to that hospital's emergency … [Read more...]
There’s Enough Blame To Go Around For The Collapse Of The Energy Giant
Enron Corp's collapse was due to corruption. Lawsuits, class actions and congressional and federal probes now are under way to try to ascertain how much of Enron Corp's collapse was due to corruption and how much was the result of bad investment decisions and the recession. As far as those who lost on the energy trader are … [Read more...]
Citigroup May Apologize for Faulty Stock Research
Citigroup Faulty Stock Research. Citigroup Inc. could be required to publicly apologize for faulty stock research by the firm's analysts, but Chief Executive Sanford I. Weill is likely to avoid facing separate charges in a broad regulatory inquiry into whether the nation's big brokerage firms misled small investors with … [Read more...]
Widow Renews Claim In OxyContin Death
Medical Malpractice Suit Over OxyContin Death. A Laurelville woman has re-filed a medical malpractice suit against a Columbus doctor, claiming a lack of information about a prescription painkiller and its interaction possibilities resulted in the death of her husband. Diana Lester Johnston filed her suit against Dr. W. David Leak … [Read more...]
Lawsuits Target Allegheny Parent
Allegheny Spawned Class-Action Lawsuit. Financial problems at the parent company of Allegheny Power have spawned at least 16 class-action lawsuits since Nov. 4, when the utility and power trader said it would delay filing its third-quarter earnings report. The latest suit, announced Tuesday by Pittsburgh lawyer Alfred … [Read more...]
Accutane Side Effects
Accutane Side Effects Injury Lawsuits. Casey Crimmins is a senior at Columbia High School. His dream is to become an actor. But when he would watch TV or go to see a movie, he noticed the actors had something he didn't, clear skin. He said, "When you're a kid, when you're a teenager, basically everyone wants clear skin. It's a … [Read more...]
DuPont Faces Class-Action Suit On Teflon
Guangdong Are Planning To Suit On Teflon U.S. Giant. While mass panic in China over DuPont's Teflon-coated cookware lifts sales of iron woks and ceramic rice cookers, some non-stick cookware-makers in Guangdong are planning a class-action suit against the United States giant for losses. Elecpro Electrical Appliance, a … [Read more...]
Well Contamination In Santa Clara?
Well Contamination In Santa Clara Contain Perchlorate. The Santa Clara Valley Water District has received information from a state investigation that hundreds of private wells in South Santa Clara County may contain low levels of perchlorate, an oxidizer. The water district is the local public agency responsible for ensuring a … [Read more...]
Asbestos Deaths Hit Area Hard
Asbestos Deaths, Lawmakers Ban The Substance. Now Rhodes' daughter and son-in-law, Laura and James Trinkle, of LaPorte, hope a national study released Thursday will convince federal lawmakers to completely ban the substance long associated with Mesothelioma the disease that killed Rhodes at age 64 and to ensure that others who … [Read more...]
$38M Awards To San Jose Family In Malpractice Suit
A Family Won In A Malpractice Suit. A San Jose family has won a 38 million dollar malpractice award after a jury agreed that delayed care for a newborn baby led to serious brain damage. The Santa Clara County Superior Court jury yesterday ruled against the San Jose Medical Group, Doctor Ilene Newman and Regional Medical … [Read more...]
Three Injured In Scaffolding Accident
Workers Were Hospitalized When Scaffolding Tilted Over. Three construction workers were hospitalized Monday morning when scaffolding they were working on tilted over, the Northampton County Sheriff's Office said. A construction worker at the scene off River Road in the Whippoorwill Hills subdivision said the workers, including the … [Read more...]
Ford, Firestone Settle Shinhoster Fatal Accident Case
Ford, Firestone And Shinhoster's Family Settled The Case. It took nearly all Tuesday night, but just before Ford, Firestone and Earl Shinhoster's family were to face off in front of a jury, they suddenly settled the case. The two sides met until nearly midnight when Ruby Shinhoster finally agreed to the money the companies were … [Read more...]
In Japan, A Popular Liver Cure Proves To Be A Killer
Liver Cure Can Be Toxic. Western drugs can be highly toxic. Asian medicine, derived from herbs, can do no harm. That's a widespread belief, which Japan found to be untrue with shosaikoto, a once immensely popular liver treatment. Shosaikoto is a mixture of seven herbs, including Chinese date, ginger root and licorice root, … [Read more...]
SEC May Sue Franklin Over Market Timing
Franklin Was Charged With Fraud. Franklin Resources, the San Mateo mutual fund giant that was charged with fraud last week by Massachusetts regulators for giving preferential treatment to a wealthy Las Vegas investor, disclosed on Monday that it faces a possible suit by the Securities and Exchange Commission and an … [Read more...]
Regulator: Report On Enron ‘Solid’
Enron Price Manipulation and Deceit. However, Pat Wood, chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, said at a news conference that his agency's report was a first step and regulators are still conducting their investigation, which could result in other energy companies being cited for their practices. "It's an initial … [Read more...]
WorldCom to Pay $750M Settlement
WorldCom Accounting Fraud Scandal. A federal judge in Manhattan yesterday approved a $750-million settlement between embattled WorldCom Inc. and the Securities and Exchange Commission stemming from the firm's $11-billion corporate accounting fraud. In a 14-page order, U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff said the settlement … [Read more...]
Cutter & Buck Announces Discovery Of Accounting Irregularities In Fiscal Years 2000 And 2001
Cutter & Buck Restate Its Financial Statements. Cutter & Buck, Inc. (Nasdaq:CBUK - News, CEO Fran Conley today announced that the Company plans to restate its audited financial statements for the fiscal years ended April 30, 2000 and April 30, 2001. The restatements will correct entries of sales into incorrect … [Read more...]
Nursing Home Will Appeal $5000 Fine From Board of Health
A Nursing Home Is Appealing A Fine. A local nursing home is appealing a $5,000 fine it recently received from the State Department of Health in connection with the attempted rape of a resident there in late July. Bill Pierce, administrator of AmeriCare Living Center of New Castle, said he was notified about a week ago … [Read more...]
Pfizer Settles Diabetes Drug Lawsuit
Pfizer Diabetes Drug Lawsuit. A woman who said her liver was destroyed by Pfizer Inc.'s recalled diabetes drug, Rezulin, still faces the prospect of a transplant. But her attorneys say a settlement reached with the drug giant hours after it lost a huge jury verdict will bring her justice. The amount of the settlement was not … [Read more...]
Ford, Firestone Settle Michigan Case
Ford And Firestone Settled A Case. A Michigan man who became a paraplegic when his Ford Explorer rolled over after one of its Firestone tires failed has settled his case out of court for an undisclosed amount, his lawyer said Friday. Chuck Burt, 26, of White Lake, Mich., was paralyzed on June 25, 2000 when a tire tread separation … [Read more...]
Warren Air Force Base Residents Told To Drink Bottled Water
Unsafe Amounts Of Lead In Water At Air Force Base Residents. An emergency order was issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's regional office in Denver after routine tests revealed unsafe amounts of lead in drinking water at the Carlin Heights subdivision. Base officials went door to door asking residents of all 862 … [Read more...]
Report: Tech Analyst Blodget Under Investigation
Tech Analyst Blodget Is Under Investigation. Internet analyst Henry Blodget is reportedly among a number of analysts who are being investigated by the New York state attorney general's office over conflicts of interest they may have had while making stock recommendations. Scott Brown, a spokesman for state Attorney … [Read more...]
A Hidden Health Hazard
Mold In Our Houses Could Be To Blame. Deena Karabell had lived in her New York City apartment for 15 years, so when she fell ill in 1983, she never suspected that her apartment itself could be to blame. Over the next 15 years she grew progressively weaker. Finally, in the spring of 1998, she lost 30 pounds and went into anaphylactic … [Read more...]
Jeep Liberty Rolled Over In Test
Jeep Liberty Rolled Over In A Driving Test. AutoWeek magazine says a 2002 Jeep Liberty was "bent on almost every body panel" when it rolled over during a severe emergency handling maneuver in a driving test last month. DaimlerChrysler Corp., which debuted the new sport-utility vehicle in June, said the test was inappropriate for … [Read more...]
Liberty Rolls Over In ‘AutoWeek’ Test
A Respected Magazine Rolled A Jeep Liberty In A Slalom Test. A respected auto-enthusiast magazine rolled a Jeep Liberty sport-utility vehicle in a slalom test last month, raising the specter that DaimlerChrysler's hot-selling model could be tagged unsafe. Jeep says that would be unfair because Liberty is safe, isn't … [Read more...]
Rezulin Suit Settled Before Trial
Rezulin Lawsuit Settlement. Attorneys settled a $175 million lawsuit against the maker of Rezulin on Monday, averting the nation's first trial blaming a death on the diabetes drug. Details of the settlement, reached Monday in Hinds County Circuit Court in Raymond, were sealed. As part of the settlement, the drug's manufacturer, … [Read more...]
Ford Settles Ignition Lawsuit
Ford Motor Settled Lawsuit Over Auto Defects. Ford Motor Co. settled one of the industry's biggest auto defect cases Thursday, agreeing to pay for repairs on millions of cars and trucks with an ignition-system flaw that can cause the vehicles to stall in traffic. The deal could cost the automaker $2.7 billion, the plaintiffs said. … [Read more...]
How Safe Are the New COX-2 Painkillers
Are COX-2 Painkillers Safe? Michael Castellino is one of approximately 33 million people who take nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) like ibuprofen and diclofenac for pain (in his case, for osteoarthritis). "I can't live without my meds, but it was getting that I couldn't live with them either," says the 63-year-old New … [Read more...]
MOTOR VEHICLE SETTLEMENT: $2 million
Motor Vehicle Verdict Settlement. Ricardo Carrillo v. Penske Truck Leasing Co.; JEFCO, Inc.; and Benefacio Rodriguez 26286/98 JUSTICE: Peter J. O'Donoghue ATTORNEYS: Partner at Parker & Waichman, Great Neck for plaintiff; Mitchell Teitelbaum of Torino & Bernstein, P.C., Mineola for defendant. FACTS: The accident … [Read more...]
FDA Sends Warning Letter To Vioxx Maker
Vioxx Maker Misleading Information. The Food and Drug Administration has ordered Merck, maker of the blockbuster painkiller Vioxx, to issue a letter to doctors "to correct false or misleading impressions and information" stemming from the drug's promotional campaign. Merck's marketing efforts, aimed mainly at doctors, … [Read more...]
Bayer Legal Action Over Baycol Gathers Pace in US
Baycol Has Been Linked To Deaths. Bayer, of Germany, is facing an escalation of its legal problems as lawyers from more than 50 US firms gather in Chicago on Wednesday to co-ordinate their actions over Baycol, the cholesterol drug. The troubled chemicals and pharmaceuticals group also faces an investigation by the state prosecutor … [Read more...]
YOU AND ARTHRITIS DRUGS
Arthritis Drugs Risk Of Cardiovascular Events. Click here for Free Vioxx Lawsuit Case Evaluation An article in the Aug. 22/29 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) suggested that popular arthritis drugs Vioxx and Celebrex may increase the risk of cardiovascular events -- including heart attacks, strokes … [Read more...]
Baxter Withdraws Dialysis Machines
15 patients died at health centers while undergoing kidney dialysis. The United States medical device firm Baxter International Inc has voluntarily recalled two batches of dialysis products in Spain after 15 patients died at health centers while undergoing kidney dialysis. Baxter, based in the Chicago suburb of Deerfield, … [Read more...]
West Texas jury awards Amarillo couple $11.1 million
A Man Developed A Cancer Because Of Asbestos Exposure. A Nolan County jury has awarded an Amarillo couple $11.1 million after a jury decided the husband's lung cancer may have been caused by asbestos exposure. Bob and Joyce Hutchison sued Combustion Engineering Inc., Owens Illinois Inc. and U.S. Gypsom in August 2000. … [Read more...]
Dot-Bomb Victims Take Aim At The Analysts
Analysts More Interested In Generating Business. It took a while, but the litigation that normally erupts when stocks tumble has finally started to erupt in the aftermath of last year's tech-stock collapse. What do your creditors say about you? Class-action lawsuits have been filed against the biggest Wall Street firms, … [Read more...]
Pulled Drug May Be Linked to 52 Deaths
Pulled Drug Baycol Linked to 52 Deaths. Bayer AG said Monday that its Baycol anti-cholesterol drug may be linked to 52 deaths, five days after Germany's biggest drug maker announced a voluntary recall of the drug. The Leverkusen-based company said the deaths occurred following treatment with Baycol's active ingredient, … [Read more...]
Lawsuit Accuses Brokerage, Analyst Of Cheating Amazon, eBay Investors
Brokerage, Analyst Defrauding Investors. Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co. and analyst Mary Meeker were accused in two lawsuits yesterday of defrauding investors in Internet auctioneer eBay Inc. and online retailer Amazon. com Inc. In complaints filed yesterday in Manhattan federal court, investors charge that Meeker … [Read more...]
Morgan Stanley’s Mary Meeker Is Named In Lawsuits
Mary Meeker Provided Biased Research. Mary Meeker, the Morgan Stanley analyst once dubbed "Queen of the Internet" for her bullish reports on the sector, was named as a defendant in a pair of lawsuits on Wednesday alleging she provided biased research on eBay Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. Meeker is the second high-profile analyst to be … [Read more...]
Report: Nursing Home Abuse Widespread
Nursing Homes In The U.S. Has Been Cited For An Abuse. Almost one of every three nursing homes in the United States has been cited for an abuse or violation, according to a government report released Monday. The report, prepared at the request of Rep. Henry Waxman, D-California, found that over a two-year period from January 1, … [Read more...]
Nursing Home Abuse
Congressional Report Nursing Home Abuse. Reports of serious, physical, sexual and verbal abuse are "numerous" among the nation's nursing homes, according to a congressional report released today. The study, prepared by the minority (Democratic and Independent) staff of the Special Investigations Division of the House Government … [Read more...]
Dads’ Chemical Exposure Linked to Kids’ Cancer
Chemical Exposure May Increase Cancer. A man's on-the-job exposure to certain substances including lacquer thinner, turpentine, diesel fuel and wood dust may increase the chances that his child will develop a type of childhood cancer called neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma occurs in infants, children and, very rarely, … [Read more...]
NHTSA Probes Continental Tire
Safety Officials Investigating Tires That Ford Use. Federal safety officials opened an investigation Tuesday into 2.7 million tires that Ford Motor Co. has used on the F150 pickup and as replacements in its recall of Firestone tires. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said there have been at least 338 claims of … [Read more...]
LASIK Surgery: Hidden Risks and Regrets
Hidden Risks Of LASIK Surgery. The advertising and infomercials suggest LASIK surgery is painless and foolproof. The surgeon cuts a tiny flap on the surface of the eye and a few blasts from a laser burn away part of the cornea in hopes of giving patients perfect vision. When we first reported on LASIK surgery last year … [Read more...]
Toxic CCA Playgrounds
Preservative Known As Toxic CCA Extend The Life Of Wood. If there's one thing wood knows how to do, it's rot. Expose lumber to the elements, and within as few as five years, sun, rain, termites and fungus can reduce it to pulp. That's why builders were so enthusiastic in the 1970s when the lumber industry introduced pressure-treated … [Read more...]
FDA OK of Stomach Band Premature, Researchers Say
Stomach Band Was Cleared. An adjustable stomach band used for treating severe obesity was cleared prematurely by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and may not be as safe as previously thought, according to researchers who conducted a four-year study of the product. The inflatable banding system, called the … [Read more...]
Mitsubishi SUV ‘Unsafe’
Mitsubishi Montero Has A Severe Risk Of Tipping On Two Wheels. The 2001 Mitsubishi Montero Limited sport/utility vehicle has a severe risk of tipping on two wheels, according to Consumer Reports, which gave the vehicle a rare "not acceptable" rating. The magazine published by Consumers Union said the problem was discovered in … [Read more...]
Zyban Warning After Bad Reactions
Zyban May Cause Adverse Reactions. A committee monitoring the anti-smoking drug Zyban has received almost 800 reports of adverse reactions in the seven months since it became available in Australia. The Australian Adverse Drug Reactions Advisory Committee also reported nine deaths among people taking the drug, although it could … [Read more...]
Texas Medical-Device Co. Faces Suit
Medical-device maker Sulzer Orthopedics, facing 700 lawsuits over a hip-replacement part it recalled last year. Medical-device maker Sulzer Orthopedics, facing 700 lawsuits over a hip-replacement part it recalled last year, has been sued by a man who says his knee implant had the same defect. Leroy Harp of Tulsa, Okla., sued … [Read more...]
Firm Asks Net Analyst Blodget To Keep Quiet
Net Analyst Blodget Limit His Opinions. Noted Internet analyst Henry Blodget has been asked by his firm to limit his opinions to paper, but some comments keep leaking through the gag order. Merrill Lynch asked Blodget to not comment publicly or to the press about the companies he covers beyond what is in his written … [Read more...]
Officials Suspect IPO Manipulation
Wall Street IPO Manipulation. Joseph Schacherer feels he was cheated by Wall Street. Like so many small investors who chased a share of the Internet dream, the Oceano, Calif., resident hoped to invest in the hotly anticipated initial public offering of Red Hat, the software vendor that went public in August 1999 for $14 a … [Read more...]
Chronology of events in Ford/Firestone controversy
Bridgestone Corp. Stop Supplying Tires To Ford Motor Co. The following is a chronology of events leading to the decision of Japan's Bridgestone Corp. on Monday to stop supplying new tires to Ford Motor Co. because of a dispute over whether Ford Explorer Sport Utility Vehicles or Firestone tires have caused 174 traffic deaths in the … [Read more...]
Don’t Call Stachybotris the Black Plague, But the Fuzzy Fungus Is Plaguing the South
Health Problems Associated With Fuzzy Fungus. Last October, Teresa Koehlar noticed sores and tiny red bumps on her legs and nose. Her dogs started having stomach problems. Soon, her neighbors were throwing their own infected couches and mattresses in Dumpsters. In March, residents of her suburban apartment complex were told to … [Read more...]
Four Suffer Arthritis After Controversial Treatment
Lyme Disease Vaccine Can Cause Arthritis. Researchers have reported four cases of temporary arthritis they believe are associated with a controversial Lyme disease vaccine. Since the vaccine LYMErix was approved in December 1998, there have been questions about whether it might cause arthritis in some people. … [Read more...]
Juries Treat Nursing Home Industry With Multimillion Dollar Verdicts
Nursing Home Industry Multi-million Dollar Verdicts. Mary Roden, an Alzheimer's patient, spent more than two years at the Starcrest Nursing home in Newman, Ga. Before she got out, she had suffered at least 32 separate injuries. For example, in March 1999, Roden was allegedly left for hours with her legs touching a heat … [Read more...]
$2.19M Labor Law Verdict
Labor Law Verdict. Tiziano Sozzi, a 38-year-old painter and plasterer, was injured on when the ladder he was working on collapsed. Tiziano Sozzi v. Gramercy Realty Company No. 2 LP 22523/98 March 15 Kings Supreme JUDGE: Ira B. Harkavy ATTORNEYS: Andy F. of Parker & Waichman, Great Neck. Elsa Rodriguez Preston of … [Read more...]
Arsenic Victims ‘Never Know What Hit Them’
Arsenic Victims By Treated Wood. Rick Feutz, a former Teacher of the Year in Washington, started a routine backyard project one week back in the late 1980s. He decided to build a swimming raft for his kids off his lakefront property near Seattle. Sawing and building, he felt like he was coming down with the flu. "By the … [Read more...]
Arsenic Fears Rise Over Treated Wood Disposal
Arsenic Treated Wood Disposal Is Qualify As Hazardous Waste. Pressure-treated lumber has enough toxic chemicals in it to qualify as hazardous waste. But years ago, industry lobbyists in Washington secured an exemption from hazardous waste laws. Because of that, tons of treated wood decks and playgrounds that wear out can … [Read more...]
The Poison In Your Back Yard
Pressure-Treated Lumber The Newest Environmental Hazard. In bug-filled Florida, pressure-treated lumber has been a modern miracle. It stands up to termites, beetles and the rot that comes from relentless humidity. Every day, the lumber flies out of home-improvement stores to become boardwalks, backyard gazebos, picnic … [Read more...]
Tiremaker Settles Texas Suits Involving 78 People
Lawsuits Filed By Victims Against Tiremaker Have Been Settled. Twenty-six lawsuits filed by accident victims who alleged tread separation on tires made by Bridgestone/Firestone caused their rollover crashes have been settled for an undisclosed amount, a Houston law firm and the tiremaker said. Linda Houssiere, of the … [Read more...]
Hip Replacement Patients May Face More Surgery
Hip Replacement Injuries. “I feel like I have an alien living in my body, says Rhonda Silva. Rhonda Silva used to take long walks with her husband. Now she's confined to her Oakland, California, apartment, immobile for ten months with defective hip replacements that cause her "excruciating pain." "I feel like I have an alien … [Read more...]
Md. Court Decides Lead Paint Appeal
Cases That Poisoned By Lead Paint Have A Right To File Lawsuit. Maryland's mid-level appeals court ruled in separate cases yesterday that renters poisoned by lead paint have a right to file negligence lawsuits against public housing agencies but cannot sue real estate agents who broker leases for lead-contaminated homes. The Court … [Read more...]
Outcomes Following PolyPropylene Mesh PuboVaginal Slings For Stress Urinary Incontinence
PolyPropylene Mesh PuboVaginal Slings Placement Inuries. 56 consecutive women underwent a ProteGen sling placement in a community hospital. Methods Between 5/97 and 3/98, 56 consecutive women underwent a ProteGen sling placement in a community hospital setting by a single surgeon using a standard technique. Chart review and … [Read more...]
Patient Safety Being Left Behind
Patient Safety Left Behind With Medical Errors. An overworked nurse infuses the wrong type of blood into a patient. An experienced pharmacist puts the wrong drug in a child's medicine bottle. A less-experienced surgeon blows a heart procedure that is performed more frequently and flawlessly down the street. All the patients die, … [Read more...]
SUV Rollover Risks Kept Quiet
SUVs Are The Riskiest When It Comes To Rollover Accidents. Just how risky are SUVs when it comes to possible rollovers? If you can't find figures to help you make an educated assessment, CBS News Transportation Correspondent Bob Orr says you can blame the auto industry and Congress. While SUVs are among the most popular … [Read more...]
SUVs’ Popularity Likely To Mean More Suits
Rollover-Related Lawsuits Are Expected To Increase. Many rollover-related lawsuits have been filed during the past decade, and the number is expected to increase dramatically as the popularity of sport-utility vehicles rises, lawyers and consumer safety advocates say. The highest-profile case, Ford Motor vs. Ammerman, reached the … [Read more...]
AHP’s Diet-Drug Settlement Shortchanges Consumers
Diet Drug Lawsuit Settlement. American Home Products Corp.'s $3.75 billion settlement of lawsuits over its withdrawn diet drugs leaves most former users unfairly "trapped" in an agreement providing inadequate compensation, opponents of the pact told a judge. U.S. District Judge Louis Bechtle heard final arguments today … [Read more...]
Jury Reaches Verdict In Collapsing Fire Ladder Case, Says Law firm of Parker & Waichman
Collapse Of A Fire Ladder. NEW YORK, May 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Following the collapse of an aerial fire ladder during an attempted fire rescue in 1994, a loving husband and father plunged to his death while his family and a New York City firefighter were severely injured. On Friday, April 28, a Brooklyn Jury found that the City … [Read more...]
Opening Arguments Delivered In Air Bag Death Case
Death In A Crash Resulted From Aggressive Air Bag. A girl's death in a minivan crash resulted from "a terribly aggressive air bag" by an automaker more concerned about sales even the cost of test dummies than proper testing of the device, an attorney argued Friday. The family made the claim on behalf of Alison Sanders' family, … [Read more...]
Drug Linked To Liver Damage
Duract May Cause Liver Damage. Dave Storey took a new drug called Duract to relieve chronic back pain and ended up with liver failure. CBS News Correspondent Sharyl Attkisson tells Dave's story. Dave Storey, a chef in Nevada, was nursing chronic back pain in late 1997 when his doctor gave him a new pain medication, Duract. Dave … [Read more...]
Americans Ignorant of Their Implants
25 million Americans are living with implanted medical devices, from pacemakers to artificial joints. Up to 25 million Americans are living with implanted medical devices, from pacemakers to artificial joints, but too many patients have unrealistic expectations of how long implants will last and don't even know what model is in their … [Read more...]
Two GM SUVs Get Lowest Rating
Government Issued Ratings Of Vehicles' Resistance To Rollover. The federal government on Tuesday issued its first ratings of passenger vehicles' resistance to rollover crashes, and the lowest score went to two General Motors sport-utility vehicles. The Transportation Department gave one-star ratings to the Chevrolet Blazer and GMC … [Read more...]
American Home Seeks Settlement
American Home Products Lawsuit Settlement. American Home Products Corp. stands ready to spend about $4 billion to settle much of the litigation over its diet drugs. Although final terms have yet to be worked out -- meaning a deal could still elude the company -- the settlement under negotiation would be the biggest ever over … [Read more...]
American Home Products To Appeal Court’s Ruling
American Home Products Appeal To Court. American Home Products Corporation (NYSE:AHP) will appeal today's ruling in the case of Deborah Lovett vs. American Home Products Corporation in Van Zandt County, Texas District Court. "We are disappointed by today's ruling," says Bob Schick of Vinson & Elkins, a Houston-based … [Read more...]
J&J Accused in Suture Lawsuit
Accused in a nationwide class action lawsuit of selling contaminated sutures. The nation's biggest maker of surgical sutures is accused in a nationwide class action lawsuit of selling contaminated sutures that gave patients serious infections and caused at least one death, lawyers said Tuesday. Ethicon Inc., a Johnson & … [Read more...]
$4.9-Billion Jury Award Slams GM
GM Was Slapped With The Largest Penalty In A Product Liability Case. General Motors Corp. was slapped Friday with the largest penalty ever handed out in a product-liability case, a $4.9-billion judgment a Los Angeles jury awarded to six passengers severely burned in a 1979 Chevrolet Malibu. On Christmas Eve 1993, a drunken … [Read more...]
Liposuction Blamed In Five Deaths
Five Deaths From Liposuction. A new study documenting five deaths from liposuction has raised questions about the safety of the elective surgery to reduce fat. Liposuction is the most common cosmetic surgery in the United States. The number of people undergoing the medical procedure has increased 216 percent since 1992. As the … [Read more...]
Jury Selection In Diet Drug Case
Diet Drug Can Cause Heart Problems. A woman who blames a popular diet drug combination for her heart trouble has gone to court to take on the world's seventh-largest drug maker in a closely watched case. Opening statements were expected to begin later today in the lawsuit filed in state district court by Sandra Moore against … [Read more...]
Heart Valve Abnormalities Examined
Diet Drug May Cause Heart Valve Abnormality. In the largest study of its kind, Duke University Medical Center researchers found that the longer a person used a popular duet of diet drugs known as "fen/phen," the greater the likelihood they had a heart valve abnormality. Duke researchers said in a report prepared for the annual … [Read more...]
Man Sues Heart-Valve Maker for Wife’s Death
Heart-Valve Maker Face A Lawsuit. The husband of a Northwest Side woman, who died after having a mechanical valve implanted in her heart last year, is suing the manufacturer of the device, claiming leaks in the valve led to her death. The company recently recalled the valve and other similar products. Christine Krizin, … [Read more...]
Weight-Loss Wars
Weight-Loss Drug Combination. Over the 1996 Memorial Day weekend, Mary Linnen celebrated her engagement with her parents. The wedding would take place in the fall, and she had worked out all the details but one: Before she bought her wedding gown, Linnen wanted to lose 20 pounds. Her physician had prescribed a new diet-drug … [Read more...]
Diet Drugs: Let Buyer Beware
Diet Drugs Dramatic Results. For a time, fen-phen was the hottest thing going when it came to weight loss. A combination of two prescription drugs, fenfluramine and phentermine, its users were reporting quick and dramatic results. More and more people were asking for it, and doctors and weight-loss centers were obliging them. Now … [Read more...]
NEW WARNINGS FOR PARKINSON’S DRUG, TASMAR
Tasmar Can Cause Fatal Liver Injury. FDA and Hoffmann-La Roche Inc., the manufacturer of the drug Tasmar for patients with Parkinson's Disease, are advising doctors about reports of a new finding of fatal liver injury associated with use of the drug, and recommending significant changes in how it is used. Because of … [Read more...]
Drivers Detail Air Bag Horrors
Ross Kelley Was Parked When His Airbag Suddenly Burst Open. WASHINGTON (AP) - Ross Kelley was sitting in his 1994 Chrysler minivan, parked in a driveway with the motor on and waiting for a friend, when his air bag suddenly burst open with a bang. ``The air bag just blew up in my face,'' Kelley recalled. ``It felt like someone … [Read more...]
Why Your Favorite Stock Analyst Only Has Good News
Stock Analyst Only Has Good News. Investors digest a daily slew of upgrades and downgrades from Wall Street analysts, but are far from getting a balanced diet mostly good news with a dash of positive spin. So where's the bad news? According to Chuck Hill, director of research for First Call in Boston, two-thirds of … [Read more...]
Drug-Induced Disorders
Common Type Of Drug-Induced Disorders Are Predictable. Recent estimates suggest that each year more than 1 million patients are injured while in the hospital and approximately 180,000 die because of these injuries. Furthermore, drug-related morbidity and mortality are common and are estimated to cost more than $136 billion a year. … [Read more...]
Serious Eye Injuries from Air Bags
Air Bags Can Inflict Eye Injuries Even In Minor Accidents. Activated air bags can inflict severe eye injuries, including blindness, even in minor car accidents, a small-scale study shows. The research report, published in the March Journal of Ophthalmic Surgery and Lasers, describes the spectrum of air-bag-related eye injuries … [Read more...]
Air Bag Injuries Plentiful
Research Painted A Grim Picture Of Airbag Injuries. Anyone looking for reassurance that air bags are good for you won't find much in injury studies recounted this week at the Society of Automotive Engineers Congress in Detroit. Heads nearly torn from necks. Brain trauma. Multiple rib fractures. Facial abrasions. Eyelid, shoulder … [Read more...]
Transit Authority Has Conceded Liability for the Crash of Two Subway Trains
Transit Authority Liability For Crash Of Two Subway Trains. The Transit Authority has conceded liability for the crash of two subway trains on the Williamsburg Bridge June 5 that injured 66 passengers, according to an attorney representing one plaintiff. Jerrold s. Parker of Parker & Waichman reported yesterday that in … [Read more...]
Sheily Inc Notify Patients of Heart Valve
Risk of fracture for some sizes of these valves may be higher. The Food and Drug Administration has asked Shiley Inc. of Irvine, Calif., the maker of Bjork-Shiley heart valves, to notify patients and physicians that risk of fracture for some sizes of these valves may be higher than previously thought. The fracture rate for the … [Read more...]
