Michigan Personal Injury Blog - Washington

AAJ Goes Underground to Debunk Rumors About Tort Reform

David Mittleman — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 10:00:00 GMT

The American Association for Justice is getting an important message across by advertising in Union Station throughout December. Blanketing the metro station’s walls, the message reads “98,000 patients may die annually from medical errors…That’s like 737s crashing every day for a whole year…Tort law won’t fix health care…Tell Congress to put patients first.” The message is meant to counter Republican attacks against healthcare reform legislation: Republicans and health insurance companies have rallied for putting limits on medical liability lawsuit awards, claiming that tort reform is the answer to the escalating costs of private health care insurance.

Union Station is one of most highly-trafficked areas for commuters travelling to our nation’s capital. The American Association for Justice specifically wants to remind Senate staffers that many people die of medical errors, and will be left with no recourse if Republicans have their way with tort reform.

As the American Association for Justice so aptly states, “health care reform is about making sure that every American has access to quality, low-cost healthcare, not about limiting the rights of innocent patients harmed by medical negligence.” Despite the opposition’s arguments, tort reform would do very little in reducing current health care costs. In fact:

· Medical malpractice is a tiny percentage of health care costs – less than one and a half percent of overall spending – according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and Congressional Budget Office (CBO). Restricting patients’ legal rights would have little to no effect on premiums or health care costs.

· Medical malpractice suits are less than one percent of the entire civil caseload, and have been declining for nearly a decade.

· The GAO and CBO have found no evidence of so-called “defensive medicine,” instead determining that doctors run additional tests to generate more income or help diagnose patients.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Man Accused of Killing Lansing Area Woman and Son While Driving Drunk Fit to Stand Trial

Devon Glass — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:00:00 GMT

Following up on one of our previous stories, Daniel Burwell is fit to stand trial according to competency tests conducted at the Center for Forensic Psychiatry, near Ypsilanti. Ingham County Circuit Court Judge William Collette said that the examiners at the Center concluded that Mr. Burwell was only pretending to hallucinate and hear voices.

Mr. Burwell faces charges in relation to a deadly motor vehicle accident that took place on April 20, 2009 in south Lansing. He was charged with two counts of second-degree murder after his blood alcohol contest registered at 0.18 three hours after the deadly collision. According to authorities, Mr. Burwell drove drunk through a red light at 60 miles per hour when he crashed into a vehicle carrying 46-year-old Sylvia Porter and her 17-year-old son Major Washington.

Just yesterday I blogged about an MSU student whose life was cut short by someone who is now charged with driving while intoxicated causing death. Driving while intoxicated can take the life of an innocent person in seconds, so please be careful and drive responsibly by not drinking before you drive.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Devon Glass

Washington DC Metro Train Accident

Timothy Smith — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 20:44:15 GMT

Various news outlets report that at least 9 people have died and up to 70 were injured when a Washington DC Metro train crashed into the rear of another train during the peak of rush hour traffic. Last night's crash occurred between the Takoma and Fort Totten stations.

Investigators are still trying to determine what caused the crash. In fact, the National Transportation Board is investigating witness reports that the impacting train stopped briefly before accelerating and crashing.

Metro management wouldn't comment on how fast the train was travelling at the time of impact. The impact took place at a location with a sizable distance between rail stations where the trains can reach some of the highest speeds along the rail system.

The lead train was actually stopped at impact. Video from the scene showed the incoming train ontop of the stopped lead train. The impact was so severe, that it was reported on Larry King Live that one of the cars was at least 75% compressed.

For information on safe train travel and what you can do to help ensure your and others safety on public rail transport, click here.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Timothy Smith

Metro Trains Collide Outside of Washington, D.C. During Rush Hour Traffic

David Mittleman — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:09:35 GMT

Two metro trains collided just outside of Washington, D.C. yesterday during rush hour traffic. The accident is being called “the worst in the city’s history” with nine people confirmed dead and another 75 wounded.

In the accident, a train operating on the heavily used Red Line rear-ended another stopped train at a considerably high speed at about 5 p.m. The rear train landed atop of the front train, trapping and crushing some passengers inside. Investigators are still treating the accident scene as a rescue operation, using such heavy equipment as cranes to extract other potential survivors from the mangled pile of glass and metal. The driver of the rear train, an operator since 2007, died in the accident.

Officials are searching for clues as to why this accident occurred. Initial signs of the investigation point to technical failures and possible driver error. However, the train that caused the accident was also part of an older fleet. In fact, The National Transportation Board had warned the Metrorail Transit System to phase the old fleet out back in 2006 due to major safety concerns.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman