Biloxi / Gulfport Personal Injury Lawyer - All Topics - Most Commented

A special place in Hell for tobacco executives

Gerry McGill — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 13:20:11 GMT

I hope there is reserved a special place in Hell for tobacco company executives. First there were flavored cigarettes. Guess what age group they were aimed at? Then I have been receiving junk emails for "Electronic Cigarettes", whatever they are, being pimped by shock jock Howard Stern. But today the Associated Press reports that R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company is test marketing disolvable tobacco products and says they are designed for adults. The trouble is, the little tablets look an awful lot like the Pez candies my grandsons consume.

Some members of the U.S. Senate call the product "tobacco candy" and say the are designed with one thing in mind: to get kids hooked on nicotine.

"Tobacco candies are clearly designed to appeal to children through both packaging and taste," said Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore. "This is not a safe product. This is not safe tobacco. It is a product that, like cigarettes, causes cancer and kills."

Merkely and Sen Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio have co-sponsored a provision in the Senate tobacco bill requiring the government to study health effects of dissolvable tobacco. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would be given authority to restrict how the products are marketed and sold.(somehow that doesn't make me feel any better about it)

A spokesperson for North Carolina based R.J. Reynolds accused Merkley and others of intentionally distorting the nature of the dissolvable tobacco products. "It's not tobacco candy. That terminology is their terminology," says David Howard , a spokesman for Reynolds.

I wonder how the two Senators from North Carolina will vote on Senators Merkely and Brown's provision?

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gerry McGill

Church bus crash in Mississippi kills 1; injures 23

Gerry McGill — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 16:04:32 GMT

Church Bus Flips in Mississippi; Killing 1, Injuring 23

A church bus carrying a church youth group from Louisiana to Georgia flipped Sunday July 12 at around 10:20 a.m., killing one and injuring 23. The accident took place on Interstate 20 near Meridian, Mississippi. The Lauderdale county coroner, Clayton Cobler III, reports that a rear tire blowout caused the bus to flip three times before landing on its side and trapping passengers underneath. A group of National Guard soldiers were traveling on I-20 when the accident occurred and helped extricate the injured. They also managed to lift the bus up off the two people trapped underneath and get them out.

While some sources report the deceased to be an 18-year-old male, the Shreveport Times reports that he is 14-years-old. The young man was pronounced dead at Jeff Anderson Hospital. Passenger injuries range from severe pelvic, back and chest injuries to minimal scrapes and scratches. Sources report that three passengers were airlifted to the University of Mississippi Medical Center, while 13 were taken to Rush Foundation Hospital and six were taken to Regency Hospital of Meridian. Many of those injured were released from the hospital late Sunday.

The bus left the Shreveport, Louisiana church at 4:45 a.m. The youth group was traveling to Macon, Georgia to attend a week-long Christian youth camp called Passport, which is held at Mercer University. At the time of the accident, the bus was two miles west of the Alabama state line. The rollover happened near the visitor center. The First Baptist Church of Shreveport, Louisiana learned of the accident shortly before they began their Sunday morning worship. Dr. Greg Hunt, senior pastor of First Baptist, expressed appreciation for the heroic actions and support of those involved. The congregation is pulling together to overcome this unfortunate tragedy.

Unfortunately, this is not the first time a church bus has been involved in an accident. In Texas, a fatal church bus accident was also caused by a tire blowout.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_B_arWTekeo

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gerry McGill

How To Tell If You Have Toxic Drywall In Your House

Gerry McGill — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 10:14:19 GMT

Several people have contacted me asking how to tell if they have toxic Chinese drywall in their house or business. Generally, but not always, there is the "rotten egg" odor caused by Sulfur gasses. Also if there is some way you can view the back, or unfinished, side of the drywall see if it is marked as being made in China. Further if it is stamped "KNAUF" it is imported from China. Check your evaporator coils and copper wires in your indoor A/C units. If they are black you have the toxic drywall. Finally, remove the covers from some electrical outlets to see if the copper wires are black. Use care as the wires are live.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gerry McGill

Outrageous hospital billings.

Gerry McGill — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:37:29 GMT

Ever wonder why hospital bills are so high? Consider these: Patient Jim Bujalski complained to St. Anthony's Hospital in Littleton, CO, about the cost of his prescription Plavix and Crestor tablets, which he was forced to "buy" while hospitalized. He could not use his own medications beause the Hospital only "administers drugs under its own control". The Plavix was $248 each, (he pays $8 at home) and his Crestor was $65($3 at home). That's a mark-up 31 times for Plavix and 21 and 2/3 for Crestor. The medications were part of his $58,000, one-day hospital stay.

Further, Medical Billing Advocates of America, a private firm that patients can hire to help consumers sort through their medical bill for errors, over-billing or outright fraud, has reported patients bills that contain a $2 box of tissues billed as a "mucus recovery system" for $12, a piece of gauze used to wipe down surgical equipment billed as a "fog eliination device" for $57, and a Teddy Bear billed as a "cough support device" for $57.

Medical Billing Advocates of Florida estimates that as many as 80% of all medical bills contain billing errors of some type but a spokesman for Humana, a health insurance company that receives about 6 million claims a month says that 90% of the bills do not contain errors. Assuming that neither advocacy group is totally correct and the difference is somewhere in between, there are certainly many, many errors made. Call me a cynic, but I can't help but believe that the number of overbillings greatly exceed errors in the patients' favor.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gerry McGill

Malpractice Tort Reform is a Red Herring in the Health Care Debate

Gerry McGill — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:30:50 GMT

Do you know what a red herring is?

Dictionary.com defines a red herring as "something intended to divert attention from the real problem or matter at hand". The term was coined because escaped criminals used to use the strong smell of red herrings to confuse the police's bloodhounds.

Nowadays, there are a lot of people using the "red herring" of capping rewards in malpractice cases to distract us from the real issue of health care reform. These people would claim that the main problem in our health care system comes from ridiculously expensive malpractice cases, and that doctors are being run out of business by corrupt lawyers and their greedy clients.

Of course, these claims are only loosely based on fact, and serve more to distract the public than to educate them. According to several studies, and prominent American economists, malpractice costs make up only about 2% of our nation's spending on health care, and health care prices continue to rise even in states where caps have been set on the amount of money a person can win in a malpractice case.

So why do so many people continue to push for malpractice caps as the solution to our health care problem?

For one thing, it's more easily grasped than the more complicated arguments for health care reform. Media accounts of huge jury verdicts (Remember the woman who spilled McDonald's coffee on her lap and was awarded millions?) tend to magnify the lotterylike aspects of the tort system, with undeserving plaintiffs reaping huge rewards while deserving victims get shut out.

"Everyone likes to have villains," said Kansas City lawyer Gene Graham, whose firm handles medical malpractice cases. "They want to find someone to blame. Trial lawyers have become convenient targets for people who want to say they're responsible."

Tom Baker, a law professor at the University of Pennsylvania and author of "The Medical Malpractice Myth," theorized that having "a common enemy" keeps insurance and pharmaceutical companies -- the real culprits behind rising costs, he said -- from fighting among themselves.

Conversely, [Harvard economist Amitabh] Chandra said: "Everyone likes their doctor and doctors work hard, so we as a society have a tendency to listen to their view of the world."

The Gulf Coast, and Mississippi in specific, has too many uninsured citizens for us to pay attention to these red herrings. According to the Birmingham Business Journal, all of the Gulf Coast states reported Census statistics that put them above the national average number of uninsured adults and children. As it was broken down statistically:

The U.S. average for uninsured adults was 19.85 percent. Florida had the highest level of uninsured adults in the South at 27.4 percent. Arkansas reported 25.7 percent uninsured. Louisiana had 25 percent while Georgia’s rate was 24.5 percent. Mississippi had 23.5 percent of its adults uninsured. Texas was the worst nationally with 30.4 percent of adults uninsured.

We can't afford to be distracted from the real issues at hand. Health care costs are going up, and medical malpractice caps will not help us make health insurance more affordable; if anything, capping how much an injured party can receive in damages will only hurt people who are already suffering.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gerry McGill

Advantages of contingent fees in injury cases

Gerry McGill — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 16:19:39 GMT

One of the true advantages to the plaintiff is that a contingent fee contract is a no-risk proposition for the plaintiff in that if no recovery is made they owe no fees and in most cases no costs to their attorneys. In addition, a contingent fee contract has often been described as the keys to the courthouse. In reality, only the most wealthy of plaintiffs could afford to pay a plaintiff's attorney an hourly rate plus advance all costs to be expended in a case against a major corporation.

Another advantage of the contingent fee contract is that in cases where the injuries or damages are significant enough, very competent and reputable attorneys are willing to invest the time and money necessary to do a free evaluation of the case for their potential clients. Since most contingent fee attorneys will only proceed with a case they feel has merit, they should make the evaluation as timely as possible and in the event that they do not feel that they could represent the client they should inform the client of that fact in sufficient time that the client would have time to consult with another attorney or law firm. It is not uncommon that a case is turned down by one attorney or law firm and accepted and successfully handled by another firm.

Finally, one of the major advantages to plaintiffs is that the contingent fee system encourages the plaintiff's attorneys to be efficient and to resolve the case as soon as possible. Since the attorney does not receive any fee nor any reimbursement of what may be significant costs advanced until the case is successfully concluded, the contingent fee encourages the attorney to work to settle the case as soon as possible. In contrast, most defense attorneys for large corporations and insurance companies are paid on an hourly basis. Obviously, there is no great incentive for these attorneys to conclude the case in an expeditious manner and hourly fee arrangements can encourage delay, inefficiency and unnecessary legal tactics.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gerry McGill

Toxic Drywall From China Causing Health Concerns In Homes

Gerry McGill — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 11:24:36 GMT

Several news sources have recently reported that drywall imported from China and installed in new and renovated homes in 2004-2005 has been creating noxious sulfur (rotten-egg) odors and potential health problems. In addition, the fumes given off are causing a problem with copper wiring and the coils in air conditioning units.

Doug Hoffman, executive director of the National Organization of Remediators and Mold Inspectors said he has been getting a lot of reports about the Chinese drywall recently from his members. Most of the complaints so far are in the U.S. Southeast. He said: "What they're finding is that the drywall being shipped over from China is emitting much higher levels of sulfur, methane, and other volatile organic compounds." At highest risk for health problems and children and the elderly. People with asthma and chemical sensitivities are at even higher risk.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) confirms there is a problem, but says the breadth and severity of the problem are unknown. However, anyone living along the Gulf Coast knows only too well the extensive damage caused by major hurricanes in 2004 and 2005 and the great amount of rebuilding necessary which is still going on today.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gerry McGill

Homeowners Nightmare. Insurance doesn't cover Chinese drywall damage.

Gerry McGill — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 11:37:36 GMT

Just when you thought you had seen it all with insurance companies, ABC News has released this new report on homeowner's insurance:

As a New Orleans federal court holds a hearing today on lawsuits alleging that defective Chinese-made drywall is destroying people's homes and their health, outside the courtroom owners of more than 100,000 houses built with that drywall are learning that some insurance companies are canceling their policies.

Apparently:

Now that insurance companies know about the tainted drywall, some, such as Universal Insurance and Citizens Property Insurance, have chosen to cancel policies to avoid further risk from things like corroding pipes that could burst.

Builders started using Chinese-made drywall after the combined building boom, the devastation to Florida by Hurricanes Charley, Francis, Ivan, and Jeanne in 2004, and then the Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma in 2005 caused a shortage in domestic building materials. At first, the building materials from China didn't seem to be any different than the normally-used materials, but after a while, the homeowners who moved into the homes built with Chinese-made drywall began to notice a change in their health and living conditions. Take, for instance, the story of real-estate agent Felix Martinez:

Felix Martinez thought he'd found his dream house when he bought the 3,500-square-foot beauty in Homestead, Fla., two years ago.

Then, he says, his large-screen TV mysteriously failed. Next, the air conditioner went. His bath towels smelled like rotten eggs. Visitors noted an odor in the house. Martinez says he's suffered new sinus problems and sleep apnea. His wife and son sneeze a lot.

Other families have reported similar timelines in homes that were built with Chinese materials: damage to their property, a sulfurous odor, and negative health effects, usually dealing with the respiratory system. The Consumer Product Safety Commission is currently investigating Chinese-made drywall, to see if it is emitting sulfur gasses, which can corrode copper coils and electronics in a home. A current lawsuit against the drywall manufacturer Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin says that such sulfurous gasses can have negative health effects on people, but Knauf disagrees, saying that tests have been done on the gasses and they do not affect health in any way.

Either way, it is apparent that living conditions in homes with Chinese-made drywall are becoming unbearable, so the homeowners have two options: either move, or replace the drywall. If the family moves, "they have to disclose the drywall problem and that may make their dream home virtually worthless". These homes were built in 2005 or more recently, so the majority of the people who have bought these homes have not paid off their mortgages on them, which may make selling them for less then they paid for them a financial catastrophe.

Unfortunately, if the family chooses to replace the drywall, it could cost them upwards of $100,000, and many home-owners insurance companies, such as Citizens Insurance Company, are dropping their policies with these homeowners as soon as the families make a claim to help pay for the replacement drywall.

While the law doesn't prevent insurance companies from dropping policies in this manner, this is another example of ordinary people being left out to dry by the insurance companies that they pay high premiums to every month. If we can't rely on our insurance companies to help us financially when we fall on hard times, then why do we pay them so much money? This is a sad situation, and hopefully we will learn from this, and start to hold our insurance companies and homebuilders accountable for their actions.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gerry McGill

Escaped pet python strangles 2-year-old

Gerry McGill — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 13:39:07 GMT

It's the thing of nightmares or horror movies. A 12-foot pet Burmese python excaped from a terrarium and strangled a two year old girl in her bedroom Wednesday in a central Florida home. The snake belonged to the mothers boyfriend. He discovered the snake missing from the terrarium and went to the little girl's bedroom where he found the snake wrapped around the girl and bite marks on the girl's head. He stabbed the snake several times until he was able to pry the snake away.

A caller from the house screamed to the 911 operator: "The baby's dead! Our stupid snake got out in the middle of the night and strangled the baby." When the paramedics arrived about 10:00 a.m. the baby was already dead. Authorities removed the snake, still alive, from the home Wednesday afternoon.

The Humane Society of the United States said including this death, at least 12 people have been killed in the U.S. by pet pythons since 1980, including five children. This situation is only going to get worse. Scientists estimate that at least 150,000 Burmese pythons exist in the Florida Everglades. These snakes are not native to Florida but they easily survive in the state and can reach a length of 26 feet and weigh more than 200 pounds. At least one is known to have killed a large alligator and then burst when it tried to swallow the alligator.

What is really frightening is that these Burmese pythons are capable of surviving and reproducing in at least 12 southern states including Mississippi.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gerry McGill

A thought for Memorial Day

Gerry McGill — Mon, 25 May 2009 13:35:20 GMT

"A veteran is someone who, at one point in his (or her) life, wrote a blank check made payable to the 'United States of America' for an amount 'up to and including my life'. That is honor, and there are way too many people in the Country who do not understand it." Author unknown.

If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you can read this in English, not German or Japanese, thank a veteran.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Gerry McGill