Miscellaneous

• Protect your family from adverse drug reactions

  Staff Writer | December 01, 2006 9:14 AM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  WorstPills.org has an interesting article about defective drugs, adverse drug reactions and protecting yourself and your family from such dangers. The most important recommendation they make is to talk to your doctor and keep that communication line open before making any changes. Topics in the article include:Special Problems in Nursing Homes Communication: Activating Yourself and Your Doctor...

• Hurricane evacuation route needs work

  Staff Writer | November 17, 2006 12:46 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  As the only north-south route for residents of coastal Walton County in the event of a hurricane, Highway 331 is a two-lane road that leads from the coast to the Alabama state line. Many, including Governor Jeb Bush and Senator Bill Nelson, say that the Alabama DOT needs to address these issues to avoid hurricane disasters. Making the highway four lanes is a proposed solution to the highway...

• Merck in the News

  Staff Writer | October 26, 2006 10:31 AM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  Today Merck introduced a new shingles vaccine called Zostavax, which is apparently backed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The company's new drug is put in a positive light after the recent Vioxx scandal, which included thousands of lawsuits from patients who suffered from strokes, heart attacks and blood clots while using the drug that was pulled from the shelves as a...

• Drug Companies Pay For FDA Staff Travel

  Tom Methvin | October 17, 2006 2:27 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  Over the years it has become quite apparent that the powerful drug industry has enjoyed tremendous control over the Food and Drug Administration. We now learn that, through an apparent loophole in agency rules, the FDA has allowed its employees to receive more than $1.3 million in sponsored travel since 1999 from groups closely tied to pharmaceutical and medical device companies. Interestingly,...

• Ordinary Folks Have A Need For Lobbyists Too

  Tom Methvin | October 17, 2006 2:26 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  The large and powerful companies in Corporate America (sometimes referred to as "Fat Cats") have always had ready access to the seats of power at the national level, and that has also been the case in almost every state capitol in America. In recent years that access has become much easier. Lobbyists representing these Fat Cats, who actually are more powerful than some of the elected officials,...

• Lack of safety measures in the trucking industry can cost lives

  Tom Methvin | October 13, 2006 3:53 PM | 0 CommentsMontgomery, AL

  Although tractor-trailers make up only a small percentage of the total vehicles on the road today, they cause a majority of fatalities. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, tractor-trailers have a substantially higher fatal crash rate per mile than passenger vehicles. This is very alarming, considering that most travel by tractor-trailers occurs on our interstates. Records...

• Consumers Sue Bureaus Over Damaged Credit

  Staff Writer | August 09, 2006 2:12 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  An increasing number of lawsuits against the nation's top three credit bureaus, Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian allege they are "damaging credit worthiness" of consumers through inaccurate credit reports. Various consumers and lawyers agree that erroneous reports are best handled through litigation and complaints have increased significantly nationwide. Three SC class-action suits allege that...

• Medical Device Manufacturer Settles Kickback Charges

  Staff Writer | July 23, 2006 2:17 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  An unidentified whistleblower filed suit in Federal District Court against medical device manufacturer Medtronic. The suit claims the company's spinal-plant division gave doctors kickbacks to encourage the use of its products. The company settled the first of two similar lawsuits for $40M.

• Privacy Suit Against AT&T Still Stands

  Staff Writer | July 23, 2006 2:15 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  A lawsuit over AT&T's cooperation with a government surveillance program will still proceed after federal judge Vaughn Walker rejected the Bush administration's motion to dismiss. In a separate motion, AT&T argued that their government relationship exempted them from prosecution. Judge Walker also rejected that motion, adding that the rulings did not reflect his confirmation of the accusations.

• Growing Concern Over Abusive Debt Collection Tactics

  Staff Writer | July 11, 2006 2:22 PM | 0 CommentsMobile, AL

  Debt collection agencies often buy debt from established companies for only pennies on the dollar. There is growing concern among government regulators that these agencies are using aggressive and sometimes abusive tactics to collect debt even if they could not determine that the debt is valid. One couple sued a CA based collection agency after being harassed by a collector who also posed as a...