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• Medicare Data on Doctors to be Shared

  Paul Jacquart | August 30, 2007 4:37 PM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  A recent U.S. District Court ruling may help shed some light on doctors' experience levels in their respective disciplines. The L.A. Times has reported that the ruling, which resulted from a consumer group's lawsuit to open up the Medicare database, may result in the release of files and billing information for 700,000 doctors. This information could be used to track doctors' performance and...

• Fentanyl Pain Patch May be Dangerous

  Paul Jacquart | August 28, 2007 2:15 PM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  The LA Times has reported that numerous deaths across the country have been linked to the drug Fentanyl, a narcotic delivered through a pain patch. According to the article, medical experts are concerned that the pain patch, though a convenient method of delivering pain medication, can deliver the drugs too fast and that other variables, such as skin temperature and skin thickness can affect...

• Smoke Detector Could Have Saved Lives Says Lawsuit

  Paul Jacquart | August 22, 2007 1:14 PM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  The Baltimore Sun reports that a man who lost his pregnant fiancee, son and fiancee's niece in an apartment building fire is suing the landlord for failure to install smoke detectors. The lawsuit claims damages totalling 53 million dollars. The lawsuit alleges that only three of the twelve apartments in the building had smoke detectors. The lawyer for the claimant has said that he hoped the...

• Lawsuits Say Laxative Causes Kidney Damage

  Paul Jacquart | August 20, 2007 8:57 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  More than 50 lawsuits have been filed across the country claiming that Fleet Phospho-soda, a laxative made by C.B. Fleet Co. Inc. of Lynchburg, Va.,caused serious kidney damage, sometimes leading to death, reports the Associated Press. According to the lawyers that filed the suits, the Food and Drug Administration lists Phospho-soda as safe when used as a single-dose laxative, but in the early...

• Electronic Logs Would Keep Tired Truckers Off The Road

  David Lowe | August 14, 2007 7:38 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  Trucking safety advocates are proposing that the government follow the European model that requires trucking companies to use an electronic system to record their hours of work and rest, instead of the paper log system that drivers can easily falsify to allow them to remain on the road more hours per day than permitted by federal law. A Milwaukee-Journal Sentinel story by Rick Romell sheds light...

• 255,000 Chinese Tires Recalled

  Paul Jacquart | August 10, 2007 9:45 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  The Associated Press has reported that another recall of Chinese made products has been ordered. This time the recall is at the behest of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and concerns approximately 255,000 Chinese tires manufactured by Hangzhou Zhongce that reportedly have a tire tread safety defect. The tires were imported by Foreign Tire Sales, Inc., which then shipped...

• Insurance Companies Accused of Fraud in Katrina Claims

  Paul Jacquart | August 08, 2007 9:57 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  The Associated Press has reported that the U.S. Department of Justice is contemplating intervening in a New Orleans lawsuit accusing several major insurance companies of fraud for paying off engineers in order to falsify claims. The "whistleblower" suit filed in the name of two sisters who worked for a company that contracted with State Farm, names State Farm, Nationwide Insurance Co.,...

• School Bus Accidents Studied in Virginia News Story

  David Lowe | August 06, 2007 7:46 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  Yesterday the Virginia-Pilot published a story by Marc Davis reporting that local municipalities paid about $7.5 million to more than 1,700 victims of accidents in 2004, 2005 and 2006 for wrecks caused by city cars, buses and trucks. About a third of the accidents involved school buses. The story makes the point that reliable data are not kept about the frequency of such accidents. But the...

• Collapsed I-35W Bridge Had History of Problems

  Paul Jacquart | August 03, 2007 9:14 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  While various government spokespersons have taken to the airwaves to calm the nerves of American drivers after the tragic collapse of the I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis, the media are already examining bridge inspection and maintenance records bearing upon whether officials knew or should have known that the bridge was in poor condition, with one early report making some rather unsettling...

• Lakeside Foods Recalls French Style Green Beans Due to Possible Contamination

  Jenny Albano | August 02, 2007 11:14 AM | 0 CommentsMilwaukee, WI

  Lakeside Foods Inc. is recalling 15,000 cases of 14.5 ounce French Style Green Beans because a number of the cans may have been under processed and some of the cans may have leaked. Because of the leaks and under-processing, the green beans could be contaminated with harmful organisms, such as Clostridium botulinum, which causes botulism.As of now there have been no reported injuries and no...