Bodily Injury Blog

Safety Problems Force High Chair Recall

Edward Bills — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:58:39 +0000

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced this week that the Harmony High Chair was unsafe for use, prompting the recall of 1.2 million chairs produced by Graco Children’s Products Inc. Safety issues with the chair involve several potentially defective parts that may cause the chair to topple over. More than 20 injuries have been reported from such incidents. This recall is the third major child-safety recall in the last six months.

Lawsuit Filed in Car Versus Motorcycle Crash

Edward Bills — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:57:46 +0000

A Michigan man has filed a lawsuit against former Fox 2 broadcaster Fanchon Stinger after her ex-boyfriend crashed her Ferrari into the man in 2007. The lawsuit claims that David Sugg suffered shock and lingering physical and mental pain after Rayford Jackson crashed the car into him while he was riding his motorcycle. Stinger is named in the suit because she is the registered owner of the vehicle. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages.

Rare Damages Awarded in Nursing Home Suit

Edward Bills — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:56:46 +0000

A Philadelphia jury awarded $5 million in punitive damages to the widow of a man who died of bed sores in 2008. The damages are divided between Jeanes Hospital and a Wyncote nursing home. The lawsuit had accused both the hospital and the nursing home of failing to provide adequate care for Joe N. Blango, resulting in his bed sores and eventual death. The jury also awarded $1 million in compensatory damages. Lawyers familiar with the case say they believe it may be the first time in Philadelphia that a nursing home case resulted in punitive damages.

Cancer Treatment Costs Skyrocketing, Study Finds

Edward Bills — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:37:54 +0000

Newly released research suggests that the rising cost of cancer treatments may cause some patients to turn down the care they need. According to the analysis, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, from 1990 to 2008, cancer care costs increased from $27 billion to $90 billion as new drugs were created and less invasive procedures discovered. Researchers agree that a great deal of the cost increase can be traced to financial incentives to doctors who prescribe more expensive drugs. Due to rising costs and increasing number of eligible patients, charities such as the American Cancer Society are able to help less people. In the past, the ACS could help one in five people with the medical bills. Today, they can only help one in six.

Honda Issues Recall Over Brake Problems

Edward Bills — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:36:56 +0000

Honda Motors Co. recently announced their own brake problems, prompting a recall of 410,000 Odyssey minivans and Element small trucks from the 2007 and 2008 model years. According to Honda officials, the brake pedals could wear down over time and lose braking power, making it almost impossible to stop the vehicles unless fixed. Three crashes have been officially reported in relation to the brake problems, but those involved suffered only minor injuries.

Birth Control Pill Causes Organ Failure, Lawsuit Claims

Edward Bills — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:35:56 +0000

A lawsuit has been filed against Bayer Pharmaceuticals, claiming the company sold birth control pills they knew could cause organ failure. In her lawsuit, Louise Thanos claimed that she experienced gall bladder failure after taking the birth control pill Yaz. Other women have filed similar lawsuits across the country, claiming the pills cause life-threatening blood clots and organ problems. They say the company knows or should know that the pills created a higher risk for strokes, heart attacks, deep vein thrombosis and liver and kidney disease for those who use them. Thanos claims in her lawsuit that the drug contains an insufficiently tested synthetic hormone that is dangerous to women. She is seeking unspecified damages.

Fatal Wheelchair Accident Prompts Lawsuit

Edward Bills — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:35:04 +0000

The family of a quadriplegic who died in 2007 has filed a lawsuit against a Tennessee-based wheelchair company, claiming their son suffered fatal injuries while they were repairing his wheelchair. According to the lawsuit, technicians with National Seating and Mobility were repairing Jeffrey Thompson’s wheelchair when it suddenly jumped forward, trapping Jeffrey under a nearby table and severely injuring his legs. He died a few days later from complications caused by those injuries. The lawsuit accuses the technicians of failing to remove Jeffrey from the chair before they began repairs and forgetting to turn the battery off before they started. The lawsuit is seeking $10 million in damage

Facebook Settles Class Action Over Online Privacy

Edward Bills — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:34:14 +0000

Social networking site Facebook has agreed to pay $9.5 million to settle a class-action lawsuit over a marketing program that published what users were buying. The settlement was approved by a California federal judge this week. Plaintiffs contested that the Beacon program violated their right to privacy. As part of the settlement, Facebook will issue more than $6 million in grants to organizations that study user privacy online.

Jury Awards Damages to Family Injured by Drunken Driver

Edward Bills — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:33:19 +0000

A Georgia jury this week awarded $15 million to a family who was hit by a drunken driver and whose daughter suffered severe brain damage from the crash. The drunken driver ran a red light, crashing into the Maybaum family’s car. Eleven-year-old Erica’s seatbelt became dislodged and she was thrown into the back of the Jeep, striking her head and causing it to dislocate from the spine. The jury wanted to assign some of the damages to the makers of the Maybaum’s car, Chrysler, but because the car company filed for bankruptcy protection last year, the automaker was protected.

Anthem Blue Cross Ordered to Pay Cost of Liver Transplant, Legal Fees

Edward Bills — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:32:05 +0000

A Los Angeles jury recently awarded a California man more than $200,000 to cover the cost of a liver transplant after his insurance company, Anthem Blue Cross, refused to pay. Ephram Nehme was on the transplant list at UCLA in 2006. When his condition deteriorated, he decided to have the operation in Indiana, where the wait time was much shorter. After the surgery, however, his insurance company refused to pay the medical bills. The jury concluded that Blue Cross had breached its contract with Nehme and acted in bad faith by not paying his medical bills. Nehme was also awarded damages to cover his legal fees.