Lauren Ellerman

Do you remember in Star Wars when Princess Leia says “Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope?”Well where do you turn when nursing homes continue to require families to sign arbitration contracts, without proper instruction as to what the contracts mean?“Help me Congress – you are our only hope!”Legislation…

I subscribe to a few blogs myself and this post caught my eye this morning:Doctor misses 32 lb. cyst.Why and how could he miss that?Apparently he said she was overweight. Could they remove it? YES – along with her ovaries, womb and fallopian tubes. And the physician is still practicing,…

There has been a great deal of press in our local papers (and National) about non-profit health care providers….So What essentially is the difference between non-profit or for profit?Non-Profit:Tax Exempt – does not pay property taxesNo ShareholdersHas a Board of Directors (which is usually not paid for service)Must have a…

A recent article in the WallStreet Journal highlighted a local hospital’s efforts to collect from unpaying hospital customers.This came as no surprise to me as I have had to wait in local general district court rooms for hours, to have my case called behind the hospital collection cases. And these…

I watch the FDA closely, but have a vested interest in drugs approved for the treatment of Multiple Sclerosis. Apparently, Michelle Obama and I have something in common – a parent with MS. So I was interested in today’s Wall Street Journal which reports Biogen will be working with the…

A federal Law suit was filed against a Virginia Nursing Home, New Market Nursing Care, alleging the nursing home was negligent in their care of Kenneth E Huffman.Plaintiff alleges that “the Defendant’s agents and employees deviated from the standard of care by failing to prevent avoidable skin breakdown, by failing…

Airborne Coughs Up Millions to Settle Suit Check out this article in the Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/14/AR2008081403142.htmlBy Annys ShinWashington Post Staff Writer Friday, August 15, 2008; Page D01Over the past decade, millions of consumers, including Oprah, have come to swear by Airborne — fizzy orange tablets containing vitamins, herbs and minerals…

A great new website and resource for Virginia debuted this week. VIRGINIA EASY ACCESS – a partnership between 2-1-1 Virginia (public service information source), Senior Navigator (Senior resource) and the Commonwealth.It has great information – is organized clearly and simply – and appears to be a wonderful resource.I would direct…

We frequently get calls from worried families – “Can they make my Mom leave the nursing home for not paying?” My response is always, “YES – under Virginia law, they can do that.”According to a recent article by the WallStreet Journal, nursing homes are bending the rules when evicting residents.…