Law Blog
Can a Doctor be Held Liable for a Patient’s Opioid Abuse? A $17.6 Million Verdict Says “Yes”
A St. Louis jury awarded $17.6 million in damages to a couple who had filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against a doctor for overprescribing opioid pain medication. The plaintiff, Brian Koon, was awarded $1.4 million and Michelle Koon, his estranged wife, was awarded $1.2 million. The remaining $15 million was awarded as punitive damages against…
Read MorePreventable Medical Errors Made in the Emergency Department
By their nature, emergency rooms are chaotic places. Medical staff receive patients from all walks of life with a range of injuries from cuts and lacerations to heart attack or stroke. Even in an environment of chaos and confusion, doctors call upon their years of study and training, and their skill acquired over their years…
Read MoreMedical Malpractice Verdict of $5 Million for Death from an Improperly Placed Feeding Tube
On May 18, 2016, a jury in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, awarded $5 million to the family of a man who died at Abington Memorial Hospital in 2008 from having had a feeding tube misplaced in his lung. Marvin Summerford, who was 88-years-old, died a horrifying death in 2008 as his left lung slowly filled with…
Read MoreThe Consequences of Traumatic Birth Syndrome
Ideally, the birth process is easy and uneventful. Every few seconds, somewhere on earth a baby is born, and most of those journeys from the mother’s womb into the world will be largely uneventful. In a small percentage of cases, birth injury occurs that creates trauma –physical and emotional, for both infant and mother. Traumatic…
Read MorePatient Sues Her Doctor for Removing the Wrong Rib and Trying to Cover it Up
When a doctor makes a big mistake during surgery, do you think that they should apologize for the error? One doctor at Yale New Haven Hospital allegedly made a big surgical error, but not only did they not apologize, they lied and tried to cover up the mistake. Deborah Crave, a 60-year-old patient had surgery…
Read MoreGree Ordered to Pay $15.45 million Civil Penalty for Failure to Report Defective Dehumidifiers
In what is so far the highest penalty for a single offense that the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has ever imposed, Gree Electric Appliances Inc. has agreed to pay a $15.45 civil penalty to the government. The CPSC has charged Gree with the following: Knowingly failing to report a defect and the reasonable risk…
Read MorePills Causing Panic: Heartburn Drugs Tied to Higher Risk of Kidney Disease
An estimated 15 million Americans use proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), which are sold by prescription and over-the-counter under a variety of brand names, including Nexium, Prilosec and Prevacid. The PPIs lower the acid in your body and help fight off heartburn or acid reflux disease. A study was published on Jan 11 2016 in JAMA…
Read MoreWhat Caused the Spike in Pedestrian Deaths in 2015?
According to new data released by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association, there is a projected 10 percent spike in pedestrian fatalities in the 2015 traffic crash data. This is anticipated to be the largest annual increase ever in these numbers, which is causing great alarm for the safety agencies that track these numbers. In the…
Read MoreNew Study Links Traumatic Brain Injury and Increased Risk of Suicide
Whether you suffer a traumatic brain injury from playing sports, a violent attack or a car crash, a concussion can have a devastating impact on those who survive them. A new study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal shows that head injuries cause more damage than previously thought and carry far more significant long-term…
Read MoreMedical Malpractice Lawsuit Filed over Serious Back Injury from a Botched Lumbar Puncture
When you are suffering from severe symptoms and you need emergency care, who do you trust more than your doctor at your local hospital to fix you up and send you on your way? In most cases, that is what happens. Unfortunately, an Illinois woman had a less than satisfying outcome after visiting Centegra Hospital-McHenry…
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