All Topics

• MEGA Brands Issues Giant Recall On Magtastik, Magnetix Jr., and MagnaMan Toys

  Greg Webb | March 24, 2008 4:10 PM | 0 CommentsCharlottesville, VA

  MEGA Brands America Inc. issued a recall on about 2.4 million Chinese-manufactured toys last week due to small magnetic components falling out of its toys, resulting in a choking hazard. MEGA Brands is recalling about 1.1 million Magtastik and Magnetix Jr. preschool toys, along with 1.3 million MagnaMan magnetic action figures. The toys were sold between January 2005 and December 2007 at toy...

• Biggest Verdict Ever Reached In Asbestos Related Case

  Greg Webb | March 24, 2008 4:04 PM | 0 CommentsCharlottesville, VA

  A San Francisco Superior Court jury has ordered Georgia Pacific Corp., an asbestos manufacturer, to pay over $7 million in damages, in the largest asbestos-related verdict ever. The decision came after the manufacturer exposed a onetime film actress and singer, Joan Mahoney, to fibers, causing her to contract terminal cancer, mesothelioma, while she was working in a home-remodeling business with...

• Patient Awarded $40.1 Million In Burned Heart Case

  Greg Webb | March 24, 2008 3:55 PM | 0 CommentsCharlottesville, VA

  A Washington State Superior Court jury awarded $40.1 million, including $8.35 million in punitive damages, to Paramjit Singh who had to undergo a heart transplant because his was so badly damaged by a defective machine during an operation. The incident in question happened in October 2004, when Singh checked into Providence Everett Medical Center for cardiac bypass surgery. A monitor...

• California Appellate Court Refuses to Change Its Ruling Against Ford

  Greg Webb | March 24, 2008 3:52 PM | 0 CommentsCharlottesville, VA

  A California state appellate court stood by its earlier ruling, instructing Ford Motor Co. to award $82.6 million in damages to Benetta Buell-Wilson claiming faulty design caused her wreck, even after the Supreme Court asked them to reconsider. The three appellate justices said the case used by the Supreme Court for precedent did not contain anything that warranted a change in their judgment....

• FDA Recalls Cantaloupes For Salmonella Risk

  Scott Kappes | March 24, 2008 3:48 PM | 0 CommentsGalveston Bay, TX

  Over the Easter weekend the FDA issued an alert to consumers and grocers about a possible risk of salmonella associated with cantaloupes imported by Agropecuaria Montelibano, a Honduran grower and packer. Research has lead health authorities to believe that cantaloupes imported by this company may be associated with over 50 reported cases of salmonella. All cantaloupes imported by this company...

• When Will the Administration Honor the Wounded Vets?

  Michael Phelan | March 24, 2008 3:43 PM | 0 CommentsRichmond, VA

  A recent hearing before the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee highlighted the bureaucratic hell wounded war veterans are facing when they return home from Iraq. The mountains of Department of Veterans' Affairs paperwork and red tape encountered by veterans seeking medical care is especially problematic for those with traumatic brain injuries. Sadly, brain damage from improvised explosive...

• Colorado vs. New Zealand - Medical Malpractice Liability

  RLF Staff | March 24, 2008 2:38 PM | 0 CommentsDallas, TX

  An interesting column by Senator Bob Hagedorn in the Rocky Mountain News looks at what he considers limitations and shortcomings of the medical malpractice systems in the state, as well as the nation, and compares those systems to one in place in New Zealand.Some of his outlined shortfalls in what he refers to as a lawsuit-based status quo include: Physicians are poorly policed with little...

• Prudential Didn't Use Qualified Doctors to Deny Disability Claim

  Ben Glass | March 24, 2008 2:11 PM | 0 CommentsNorthern Virginia, VA

  Graham Harrison, filed for disability benefits under his group long term insurance policy provided by Prudential Insurance Company. He suffered from Tourette Syndrome which prevented him from working on a full time basis. His doctor, a neurologist and specialist in his disease (Tourette Syndrome) had recommended that he consider reducing his work schedule to less than full time to accommodate...

• Yet Another ATV Accident

  Bruce Bierhans | March 24, 2008 2:08 PM | 0 CommentsCape Cod, MA

  On Saturday night, a twelve year old boy sustained serious injuries in an accident involving an ATVin Harwich.For years, consumer groups have sought further regulation of these vehicles because of their weight, design flaws...and their propensity to cause serious injuries, including head injuries, in adolescent males. In the Harwich case, the Cape Cod Times reported that several witnesses fled...

• Deadly Heparin

  Frank Bailey | March 24, 2008 2:06 PM | 0 CommentsJonesboro, AR

  Pet food, children's toys, and now Heparin...all unsafe Chinese products. Investigators are trying to determine if the drug Heparin was deliberately contaminated with a fake ingredient resulting in up to 19 known deaths.We know Heparin is a commonly used blood thinner. All the ingredients come from China. Dr. Janet Woodcock, the Federal Drug Administration's deputy commissioner said it is...