Law Firm Resources & News

I was shocked to learn the American Red Cross is facing another heavy fine over blood-safety violations. This most recent development brings the penalties levied against the organization to more than $15 million over the last few years. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) fined the organization $4.2 million in September for continuing to violate…

Omnicare, Inc, one of the nation’s leading suppliers of pharmaceutical services to the elderly will pay $49.5 million to settle large-scale Medicaid fraud claims. Lawsuits had been filed in U. S. District Court in Chicago by the federal government and two whistle-blowers, who were former employees of Omnicare, charging the company with fraudulent acts. The…

Unlike years ago, it is estimated that one-half to three-quarters of all nursing home residents today keep their own teeth into old age – probably the result of greater health awareness and education as well as fluoridated water. This situation has created a predicament for the residents in nursing homes as caregivers often lack the…

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/02/health/02brody.html?_r=2&ref=health&oref=slogin&oref=slogin A great article in the New York times – with some super advice (much of which we have given on our blog in the past). The issue – MEDICATION ERRORS and how 1.5 million a year are made causing injury and death. Well, if your health care providers are making mistakes, you must be…

We don’t know who paid for this study but the results are something our mothers taught us long ago! The New England Journal of Medicine recently published the results of a Michigan study which concluded that common-sense safety and hygiene practices, often overlooked by doctors, can almost wipe out a dangerous type of blood infection…

“For most Americans, the biggest health threat is not avian flu, West Nile or mad cow disease. It’s our health-care system.” That is a bold statement made by three physicians in today’s New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/02/health/02essa.html?_r=1&ref=health&oref=slogin. And what do they mean? The article analyzes a change in our healthcare system from years ago when we…

We recently represented two families whose loved ones contracted serious and deadly infections in an assisted living facility. The facility had an outbreak of Group A Strep – the same bacterium which causes strep throat. Unfortunately it can also cause death, especially in the elderly and infirm. In our cases, the Group A Strep turned…

The development of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) after surgery is common place. A DVT affects mainly the veins in the lower leg and the thigh. It involves the formation of a clot (thrombus) in the larger veins of the area. This clot may interfere with circulation and it may break off and travel through the…

Most of the nation’s hospital and nursing homes will have to teach their employees how to find fraud and report it to the government under a new federal law. Companies which do at least $5 million a year in Medicaid business must educate all employees and officers on how to detect fraud, waste, and abuse.…

An 87 year old was admitted to Hillview Nursing and Rehab (a Missouri nursing home) after falling several times at home. The nursing home staff, aware of the falls at home, recommended the use of a lap buddy at all times when the resident was using her wheelchair. A lap buddy is soft restraint or…

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/26/AR2006122600592.htmlA study out of England reveals that those who take certain heart burn medications, may have an increased risk for hip fractures… The reason, acid in the stomach allows calcium to reach the bones. No acid, calcium doesn’t do its job.I wonder though – what does one little study mean? WELL – its not one…

If legislators want to help patients make informed health care decisions, they should ensure that their state governments provide accurate, up-to-date information about doctors to the public on the Web. A report released in October by the advocacy group Public Citizen commends New Jersey for providing the most detailed information about its physicians on the…