Dozens of Medical Professionals Charged in Federal Opioid Sting
As reported by NPR, On Wednesday, April 17, Federal prosecutors announced that they are charging 31 doctors, seven pharmacists, seven other licensed medical professionals and eight nurse practitioners for alleged opioid pushing and health care fraud involving 350,000 prescriptions for controlled substances. The charges are a result of work by the Justice Department’s newly formed Appalachian Regional Prescription Opioid Strike Force. Fourteen health care fraud prosecutors were sent to regions of Appalachia known for rampant opioid abuse, overdoses and deaths in order to build cases. The work began in January, 2019 when they used data analysis to find outliers in opioid prescriptions. From there prosecutors issued search warrants.
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After 10 Infant Deaths, Fisher-Price Issues Warning About Rock ‘N Play
On April 5, 2019 Fisher-Price and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) released a warning to parents and caregivers about the Rock ‘N Play. The warning came in response to the company receiving reports of deaths involving the infant product; a total of 10 since 2015. The deaths happened when babies rolled from their backs to their stomachs or sides while unrestrained. The press release issued by CPSC noted that all 10 infants were three months of age or older.
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Massachusetts Sues the Maker of Oxycontin for Role in Opioid Crisis
Drug overdoses are the leading cause of death among Americans under the age of 50 and the numbers have been getting worse every year. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 52,404 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2015, 64,000 died in 2016, and 72,000 died in 2017. In fact, 2017 was the worst year ever for drug overdose deaths in America with almost 200 people dying of drug overdoses every day. Clearly opioids have caused a crisis in this country.
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Personal Injury Claim for Bullying
Bullying is a serious problem that has always affected children. In recent years, researchers, school teachers and administrators, and families have begun to take the issue more seriously. Sincere attempts are being made to catch warning signs and step in when a child is at risk.
There are no easy answers to solving the problem of bullying but bullying prevention approaches that offer the best results involve coming at the problem from multiple sides.
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Risk of Permanent Kidney Damage Causes Voluntary Product Recall of Liquid Infant Ibuprofen
A voluntary product recall for three liquid infant ibuprofens sold at Walmart, CVS and Family Dollar has been issued because of the possibility that they could cause permanent kidney damage. The issue with these three lots of infant’s Ibuprofen Concentrated Oral Suspension stems from potentially higher concentrations of ibuprofen. New Jersey based pharmaceutical manufacturer Tris Pharma Inc. stated there is a “remote possibility” infants, who are more susceptible to a higher potency level of the drug, may be more vulnerable to permanent nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID)-associated kidney injury. Other potential reactions include headache, abdominal pain or diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, gastrointestinal bleeding and tinnitus. There are no reports of children sickened by the recalled products but parents and caretakers should return or dispose of any of the liquid infant ibuprofens on the recall list.
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Jimmy Dean Sausage Recalled after Pieces of Metal Found
CTI Foods LLC was forced to recall 29,028 pounds of Jimmy Dean frozen, ready-to-eat (RTE) pork and poultry sausage links products after five customers reported finding metal in their meals. Specifically, the contaminated meat is in the 23.4-oz. pouches of Jimmy Dean Heat ‘n Serve Original Sausage Links Made with Pork & Turkey. The product has a January 31 use-by date with case code A6382168 and establishment number EST. 19085. The meat was made on August 4 and sent to Tennessee.
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JBS Ground Beef Recall Expands to 12 Million Pounds
Since October 4, 2018, JBS Tolleson Inc. has expanded its ground beef recall twice due to a Salmonella outbreak that has made almost 250 people sick since August. More illnesses are expected because it can take four or more weeks for a person exposed to the bacteria to become sick, be diagnosed, confirmed and reported to the CDC. The latest expansion – announced on December 4, 2018 – brings the total nationwide recall to more than 12 million pounds. The recall notice said: “The scope of this recall expansion now includes an additional 5,156,076 pounds of raw beef products, which were produced and packed from July 26, 2018, to Sept. 7, 2018. FSIS is concerned that some product may be frozen and in consumers’ freezers…”
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2018 Car and Booster Seat Recall Updates Released
On November 23, 2018, The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration updated information for multiple existing recalls of booster and child car seats, affecting thousands of products from different manufacturers.
If your child was injured because of a defective car or booster seat, contact a personal injury lawyer with experience in product liability claims in your area. He or she can discuss your legal rights and may be able to fight on your behalf for an appropriate settlement.
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Assault and Battery: Downtown Bellingham Fight Ends with Finger Bitten Off
A fight between two men who knew each other happened downtown Bellingham on November 7; it ended with one of the men having the index finger of his right hand bitten off. The plaintiff, 28-year old Terrence Uriah Erickson, was booked into Whatcom County Jail Monday on suspicion of first-degree assault, and held on $20,000 bail.
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WA State Supreme Court: State is Liable for Safety of Foster Kids
In a 5-4 decision, the Washington State Supreme court ruled that the state is liable for safety and welfare of the more than 10,000 foster children in the state’s foster system. Specifically, the majority opinion says that the state Department of Social and Health Services – now the Department of Children, Youth and Families “owes a duty of reasonable care to protect foster children from abuse at the hands of their foster parents…the foster children produced sufficient evidence from which a jury could find that DSHS breached its protective duty, and that the breach of that duty caused their injuries.” In the dissenting opinion, Justice Barbara Madsen disagreed that “a special relationship exists between foster children and DSHS and that, therefore, the state shouldn’t be held responsible for child abuse that occurs after custody is transferred to the foster parent.”