Monthly Archives: June 2009

Mothers Push for Singulair “Black Box” Warning

Written On June 30, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported that the FDA “recently told the makers of Singulair and three less widely used asthma drugs — Accolate, Zyflo and Zyflo CR — that the drugs’ labels must list a dozen mood and behavior changes as possible side effects.” The article focuses on a group of mothers who had pushed [...]

Posted in Product Liability or Medical Devices

GM Agrees to Take Responsibility for Future Liability Claims

Written On June 29, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The AP reported General Motors “has agreed to take on responsibility for future product liability claims, removing what could have been a sizable roadblock” on the company’s way to a “quick sale of its assets” and emergence from bankruptcy. GM “wants to sell the bulk of its assets to a new company and leave behind [...]

Posted in Product Liability or Medical Devices

Reports Indicate Nestle Plant Denied FDA Requests During Previous Inspections

Written On June 26, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The Wall Street Journal reports, “The Nestle USA plant at the center of a federal probe into an E. coli outbreak involving cookie dough refused to give inspectors access to pest-control records, environmental-testing programs and other information, according to newly released inspection reports covering the past five years.” Among other things, the documents show that [...]

Posted in Product Liability or Medical Devices

Friday Fun

Written On June 26, 2009 By Bob Kraft

I love the Jaywalking segment of Jay Leno’s now-former Tonight Show. That’s one of the few times when I can feel intellectually superior to other people!

Posted in Friday Fun

Matrixx Recalls Zicam Nasal Cold Products

Written On June 25, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The Associated Press is reporting that Matrixx Initiatives Inc. has started the recall of Zicam nasal cold remedies. Here are excerpts from the article:
Matrixx Initiatives Inc. said Wednesday it started a previously announced recall of Zicam nasal cold remedies following last week’s Food and Drug Administration warning that the products were unsafe.
Meanwhile, the company is [...]

Posted in Prescription Drug Claims, Product Liability or Medical Devices

Schumer to Introduce Veterans’ Malpractice Bill in Senate

Written On June 25, 2009 By Bob Kraft

New York state’s Times Herald-Record reports, “Sen. Charles E. Schumer announced Wednesday he is introducing the Carmelo Rodriguez Military Medical Accountability Act, which will give military service members the right to pursue civil actions against the military for medical negligence experienced while receiving treatment for injuries unrelated to their service.”
From the American Association for Justice [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Veterans Benefits

Seventy Cookie Dough E. Coli Cases Reported in Thirty States

Written On June 24, 2009 By Bob Kraft

KWTX-TV Waco, TX reports, “Seventy people in 30 states have been infected with a strain of E. coli O157:H7 and 41 of those cases have been linked to an outbreak associated with eating raw prepackaged cookie dough, including three in Texas.” According to the CDC, “most of the patients reported eating refrigerated prepackaged Nestle Toll [...]

Posted in Product Liability or Medical Devices

Some Physicians Fail To Inform Patients About Abnormal Test Results

Written On June 23, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The CBS Evening News (6/22, story 8, 2:00, Couric) reported that “no one wants to hear bad news from their doctor, but a” new “report…says keeping patients in the dark about abnormal test results is happening with much more frequency.”
NBC Nightly News (6/22, story 4, 2:30, Williams) reported that the study suggests “that one out [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice

Report: Counsel Without Malpractice Insurance Should Tell Clients

Written On June 22, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The Texas Lawyer reports that the Grievance Oversight Committee, which is appointed by the Texas Supreme Court, recently recommended that the court adopt a rule requiring lawyers who do not carry legal malpractice insurance to disclose their lack of coverage to clients.
This has been a controversial issue for several years in Texas. Personally, I’ve had [...]

Posted in Miscellaneous, Practice Tips

USA Today: Lawyers and Doctors Must Compromise on Malpractice

Written On June 22, 2009 By Bob Kraft

USA Today says in an editorial that the “only thing” trial lawyers and doctors “have in common” on medical malpractice “is that they’re both wrong. Doctors overestimate the degree to which lawsuits drive up medical costs (malpractice costs account for less than 2% of all health care spending, according to the Congressional Budget Office). Lawyers [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Social Security Disability

State Farm’s Rate Case Mocks Texas Insurance Regulation

Written On June 21, 2009 By Bob Kraft

No additional comment is necessary about this editorial from the Dallas Morning News today:
State Farm is masterful at working the legal system. For six years, it has danced in and out of court to thwart the Texas insurance department’s order to refund millions to policyholders in alleged overcharges.
State Farm says it has done nothing [...]

Posted in Insurance Company or Government Misconduct

Matrixx Withheld 800 Zicam Consumer Complaints From FDA

Written On June 19, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Bloomberg News reports, “Matrixx Initiatives Inc. said today it didn’t turn over to US regulators 800 consumer complaints about side effects linked to its withdrawn Zicam nasal spray and swabs.” The company halted sales of “the cold remedies on June 16 after the Food and Drug Administration warned consumers the treatments may cause a loss [...]

Posted in Product Liability or Medical Devices

Friday Fun

Written On June 19, 2009 By Bob Kraft

OK, this site isn’t really fun, but it could be helpful, and it does relate to fun things like vacations.
Onebag.com is “packed” full of tips for traveling light, or at least lighter. Speaking as the world’s worst packer, I can tell you that this site will help you lighten your load on vacations or business [...]

Posted in Friday Fun

Reports Indicate At Least 843 Homeopathic Ingredients Linked To Side Effects

Written On June 18, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The AP reported, “Zicam and hundreds of other homeopathic remedies – highly diluted drugs made from natural ingredients – are legally sold as treatments with explicit claims of medical benefit.” These products “don’t require federal checks for safety, effectiveness, or even the right ingredients,” but “many scientists view homeopathic remedies as…mostly harmless because the drugs [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Product Liability or Medical Devices

FDA Warns Against Use of Zicam Nasal Spray and Swabs

Written On June 17, 2009 By Bob Kraft

ABC World News (6/16, story 5, 2:05, Stephanopoulos) reported, “The Food and Drug Administration today told the makers of one of the country’s most popular cold medications, Zicam, to stop selling its nasal spray and swabs. In the last ten years, about 130 consumers have filed complaints, saying they permanently lost their sense of smell [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Product Liability or Medical Devices

Wolfgang Puck Toaster Ovens Recalled Over Fire Hazard

Written On June 16, 2009 By Bob Kraft

From the Web site of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission:
The following product safety recall was voluntarily conducted by the firm in cooperation with the CPSC. Consumers should stop using the product immediately unless otherwise instructed.
Name of Product: Wolfgang Puck Toaster Oven/Toasters
Units: About 1,500
Importer: Frontgate of West Chester, Ohio
Manufacturer: Kingpower Electrical Appliances of China
Hazard: The [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Product Liability or Medical Devices

AMA to Consider Whether to Adopt “Bare Below the Elbows” Dress Code

Written On June 15, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Oh great, one more thing to worry about when you go to the hospital – germs on the sleeves of your doctor. The Wall Street Journal Health Blog reports that the American Medical Association is going to consider recommending a new dress code for hospitals, and it will be “bare below the elbows.” Here are [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Medical Malpractice

Obama Privately Told AMA He’ll Back Steps to Reduce Malpractice Lawsuits

Written On June 15, 2009 By Bob Kraft

On its front page, the New York Times reports that the AMA “has long battled Democrats who oppose protecting doctors from malpractice lawsuits. But during a private meeting at the White House last month, association officials said, they found one Democrat willing to entertain the idea: President Obama.” The Times adds that “in closed-door talks, [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Government Announces Recall of Flammable Robes for Women

Written On June 12, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Consumers Urged to Check for Flammable Robes
Six Reported Deaths Prompt Urgent Re-announcement of Blair Recall of Women’s Chenille Robes

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Blair LLC, of Warren, Pa., are re-announcing the voluntary recall by Blair of 162,000 women’s full length Chenille Robes. Since the recall was originally announced in April 2009, Blair [...]

Posted in Consumer Information, Product Liability or Medical Devices

Friday Fun

Written On June 12, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Factory Balls 2 is a continuation of a game I enjoyed in its original version. You take a plain white ball and process it through the factory to make it look like a picture of the finished product. The early levels are easy once you grasp the concept, but it gets harder as you go [...]

Posted in Friday Fun