Lansing Personal Injury Lawyer - Detroit

Michigan's Drug Industry Immunity Law Persists Despite Ending to Recent Pfizer Case

David Mittleman — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 13:18:42 GMT

Henry Greenspan made a brilliant point in a recent op-ed piece in the Detroit Free Press in response to the $2.3 billion in criminal and civil penalties levied against Pfizer for illegally marketing several of its drugs. As Greenspan points out, this is not only the largest fine imposed on a drug company, it is also the largest fine levied against any company in American history. Nevertheless, because of a14-year-old drug industry immunity law in Michigan, Michigan residents cannot bring suit over injuries or deaths caused by Pfizer drugs.

What’s more astonishing is the fact that Pfizer pled guilty to felony charges. Indeed, Pfizer’s subsidiary companies promoted their drugs for uses that were explicitly rejected by the FDA because of safety concerns. As Greenspan points out, as far as these off-labeling tactics caused injury and death, Pfizer’s actions are paramount to negligent homicide. Pfizer is, therefore, a self-admitted felon. However, Michigan citizens are still left with no recourse to hold Pfizer accountable for their actions.

Politicians who continue to defend Michigan’s ridiculous law will have to face Michigan voters in years to come. Generally, these politicians are on the right and with a gubernatorial race within a little over a year, these Republicans will have to find a way to explain their position to their voting base. Election day is right around the corner: November 2, 2010, to be exact. So be careful of which box you check on the ballot. Electing the wrong candidate could mean your right to sue a company who cares so little for your well-being that they would purposefully sell you drugs that could injure or kill you or your loved ones.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Detroit Bus Crash Injures Six Students

Devon Glass — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:15:01 GMT

An accident involving two Detroit school buses resulted in injuries to six students on Monday. The collision occurred in metro Detroit, at the intersection of Plymouth Road and West Outer Drive.

The first bus was stopped at a red light when a second bus approached from behind. According to reports, the driver of the second bus looked away from the road in order to ask students not to stand while the bus was in motion. When the driver looked back at the street ahead, the crash occurred.

Fortunately, none of the injuries are thought to be life-threatening.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Devon Glass

Unlicensed Driver Causes Tragic Crash

David Mittleman — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 10:59:29 GMT

An unlicensed Detroit woman caused a crash early Wednesday morning on the Ohio Turnpike outside of Cleveland. She was driving with three children in her minivan, and it appears that none of them were restrained properly. Two of the children were ejected from the vehicle and thrown into traffic. They were pronounced dead at the scene. The third child, who is five months old, remains in critical condition in a Cleveland-area hospital. An adult passenger in the minivan and the driver of the other vehicle involved were also taken to the hospital with less-severe injuries.

The driver, who was not seriously hurt, did not have a driver’s license and apparently has never had one. According to Secretary of State records, she has received over a dozen tickets since 2001 and was ruled unqualified to receive a license.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Michigan Court of Appeals Scales Back Governmental Immunity for Dangerous Bridges

David Mittleman — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:30:23 GMT

Governmental entities play an important role in our daily lives. Indeed, it is nearly impossible to go about one’s day without utilizing some type of governmental service. Occasionally, people are injured when a governmental agency fails to discharge its duties properly. This is precisely what happened to Robert Moser.

Mr. Moser was traveling on Interstate 75 in Detroit when a large block of concrete separated from an overpass and crashed through his windshield. As a result, he received broken ribs, head lacerations, and a collapsed lung. Mr. Moser sued the City of Detroit, Wayne County, and the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), alleging that their negligent maintenance of the bridge caused his injuries. MDOT sought to have the case dismissed, asserting that Michigan law grants it immunity from liability unless there is a defect in "the improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel." The trial court denied MDOT’s motion, concluding that a bridge necessarily includes the fascia and other elements as part of its superstructure, and that these elements constitute "the improved portion of the highway designed for vehicular travel."

In a two-to-one decision, the Michigan Court of Appeals agreed. The majority stated:

The fact is, a road is not a two dimensional surface comprised of only length and width. Logically, then, the maintenance of the improved portion of the highway includes the maintenance of the sides and underside of the highway. If the sides and underside are allowed to deteriorate, the highway is just as subject to collapse or other dangers, as it would be if the surface were allowed to deteriorate (perhaps even more so).

The dissenting judge, in contrast, opined that "only the travel lanes of a highway" are subject to the exception to governmental immunity.

There is no question that we rely on governmental units to provide some of our most important services. If these services are not provided, or are provided negligently, the results can be catastrophic. Governmental agencies should be subject to some level of accountability for their careless acts or omissions.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Hit and run motor vehicle accident leads to the death of a 13-year-old boy

Devon Glass — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 16:45:00 GMT

Detroit police are searching for the driver of a white minivan who struck a 13-year-old boy and then drove away. The accident occurred last Thursday and the boy, Roger Beasley, died at Children’s Hospital two days later from massive brain damage.

Surveillance footage revealed that the boy was struck near Grand River and Mettetal in Detroit. Furthermore, it appeared as if the van attempted to avoid the boy, but struck ultimately struck him and did not stop.

Police said the minivan is either a Dodge Caravan or Plymouth Voyager that should have damage to the front right corner.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Devon Glass

Michigan Supreme Court permits lawsuit against 911 dispatcher to continue

David Mittleman — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 08:45:35 GMT

The Michigan Supreme Court voted 4-3 today to deny the appeal of a Detroit 911 dispatcher who was accused of intentional infliction of emotional distress after she questioned a gunshot victim that called for emergency services. The operator apparently asked the injured and distraught woman, Lorraine Hayes, if she was a “mental patient” when Hayes called 911 twice on January 12, 2006 saying she had been shot in the head. Lorraine Hayes’ lawsuit will now go on to trial.

The Court of Appeals stated that the operator, Kimberly Langford, had berated and insulted Hayes during the emergency call. She did, however, dispatch police to the address eventually.

Unfortunately, the police could not find the location and EMS only reached Hayes after she called her son in Minnesota, who called Detroit police for her.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Department of Justice Cracks Down on Insurance Fraud

David Mittleman — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 17:34:25 GMT

The U.S. Department of Justice has announced that the former managing pharmacist of a New Jersey pharmacy has pleaded guilty to submitting fraudulent claims to health insurers. Ruben Aguilar admitted to conspiring with others to submit claims for prescriptions that the pharmacy never dispensed over a five-year period spanning from 2002 to 2007. Aguilar could serve up to five years in prison and be forced to pay a hefty fine.

Among the many insurers that fell victim to the fraud was the federal Medicaid program, which insures low-income individuals in conjunction with certain state Medicaid programs. Medicaid and Medicare, which insures those over 65 years old and certain other qualifying individuals, are frequent targets of attempted fraud. The Department of Justice has partnered with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to prevent waste and abuse in the system. The goal is to keep the cost of these federal programs down, thus saving money and improving the quality of services provided.

Aguilar’s plea came on the same day as a major health care fraud sting operation resulted in the arrests of 53 individuals, including doctors, executives, and beneficiaries, in the Detroit area. In addition, eight Miami-area residents were arrested today on similar charges.

These recent arrests are a clear indication of the administration’s aggressive policy of attacking Medicaid and Medicare fraud. If you become aware of fraudulent activity, you can report it by e-mailing HHSTips@oig.hhs.gov or by calling 1-800-HHS-TIPS.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Blue Cross Blue Shield to Pay $1 Million to Families of Autistic Children

David Mittleman — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 11:32:09 GMT

Blue Cross Blue Shield has agreed to pay $1 million dollars total to families that sought coverage for behavioral therapy for their young autistic children and were denied. The settlement money will go to approximately 100 families, including those that were denied coverage or who had to pay the cost of the therapy out-of-pocket.

The federal lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Detroit after the families were denied because Blue Cross Blue Shield deemed the therapy “experimental”. Blue Cross Blue Shield has since changed their policies regarding autism therapy: beginning last month they started offering therapy to autistic children from ages 2-5. However, they still maintain that they consider the treatment “investigational and experimental”.

All of the children named in the lawsuit were treated at an autism center operated by William Beaumont Hospitals in Royal Oak, Michigan. The specific therapy offered at the hospital aims to help children address common social and communication issues associated with autism. Early intervention is considered key to helping autistic children develop at a similar rate to their non-autistic peers.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

Don't Believe the Hype that Affordable Health Care for Everyone is a Bad Idea

David Mittleman — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:13:04 GMT

Senator Shelby (R-Ala.) is apparently living in a world of his own: he currently stated on “Fox News Sunday” that Obama will “destroy the best health care system the world has ever known”. He then went on to state that once the government gets involved in “the details” you place private insurance companies at an unfair disadvantage—against the government, who has the “incentives” and “power“ to crush private enterprise. He ultimately resorted to fear mongering, warning Americans “[that] they better be careful what they want”—some of the same old tactics that have placed this country in the desperate economic situation it’s in now.

Perhaps Senator Shelby is unaware that the Census Bureau estimated that there were 46.6 million uninsured Americans in 2005. Surely that number hasn’t decreased in 4 years, given that most Americans couldn’t afford private health insurance prior to our nation’s economic collapse. Maybe Senator Shelby continues to argue against government-sponsored health coverage for all Americans because he doesn’t have to worry about not being able to afford private health care coverage. Instead, he has government issued health insurance, provided by the taxpayer dollar.

Senator Shelby pretends to have the well being of the American people in mind—except when it’s inconvenient. In fact, he was a strong advocate against the struggling big three automakers, and supported foreign automakers instead. Not surprisingly, Senator Shelby’s home state of Alabama has won three foreign assembly plants since the 1990s, including Honda, Mercedes Benz and Hyundai, as well as an engine plant from Toyota and numerous investments from foreign auto parts makers. Since his state is so heavily reliant on foreign automaker kickbacks, its no wonder Senator Shelby is on their side. Could it be that he also has private insurance companies in his back pocket too?

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman

11-Month-Old Mauled to Death by Family Dog

David Mittleman — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 09:15:17 GMT

Late in the afternoon on Wednesday, an 11-month-old "miracle baby" boy was mauled to death by the family’s pit-bull mix in Eastpointe, Michigan. The child was known as a "miracle baby" because it was the couples only child and the mother was told she could not conceive. According to detectives who were at the scene, the baby was on the bed with the parents when "somehow the dog snuck in and swiped the child off the bed." A neighbor who saw the aftermath, said the mother and father came out of the house covered in blood and that the mother stated "the dog got the baby by the head." The father shot the dog several times during or after the attack, killing the dog. Firefighters responded to the scene and tried everything to save the child, who later died at St. John’s Hospital and Medical Center in Detroit. Neighbors of the family (whose name has not been released) reported that the dog was "aggressive" and had been warned by the family not to get too close to it. The boy would have turned one next month.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by David Mittleman