Author: Ring of Fire Staff

By Cameron Stephenson September 22nd, 2012  3:00pm According to the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), over 225,000 people die each year as a result of iatrogenic causes.  In fact, this staggering number ranks as the third leading cause of death in the country, behind heart disease and cancer.  The breakdown according to JAMA is as follows: 12,000 deaths/year from unnecessary surgery 7,000 deaths/year from medication errors in hospitals 20,000 deaths/year from other errors in hospitals 80,000 deaths/year from infections received in hospitals 106,000 deaths/year from non-error, adverse effects of medication In short, the objective data supports what we should all know based on common sense; healthcare providers, like the rest of us, are not immune from making mistakes.  And, like the rest of us, when they make mistakes they should be held accountable.  Why should a physician or nurse be treated any differently than an accountant, a construction worker, or the driver of a motor vehicle?  When these folks make mistakes and are found liable, they have to pay for the damages their mistakes cause.  The healthcare profession should be no different. The merit of any case should be judged based upon the facts and circumstances surrounding it, rather than being immediately dismissed as frivolous just because of the industry in which it originates.  In medical malpractice cases, more often than not, people have been severely injured...

FDA too slow to protect Fosamax patients’ health By: Timothy M. O’Brien September 22nd, 2012  7:00am On September 9, 2011, a joint FDA Advisory Committee voted overwhelmingly, 17 to 6, to recommend that the United States Food & Drug Administration include stronger warnings on bisphosphonate drugs, such as Fosamax.  The proposed and requested warnings would emphasize the lack of long-term fracture reduction benefit from Fosamax. In their review of the clinical trial information from Merck’s Fosamax program, the Advisory Committee members observed that there were no clinical trial data showing any long-term fracture reduction benefit from the use of the drug.  The FDA Advisory Committee determined that these stronger long-term use warnings are necessary in light of the profound risks of osteonecrosis of the jaw (literally, death of the jaw) and non-traumatic femur fractures.  Numerous epidemiologic studies have demonstrated a significantly increased risk of these side effects with long-term Fosamax use. The FDA Advisory Committee immediately communicated to the FDA the results of its years-long research and analysis, as well as its 17 to 6 vote in favor of strengthening the Fosamax warnings and indications.  The FDA, however, still has not brought to bear the necessary label change to the Fosamax prescriber’s information. A likely reason for the unexplained delay? Merck and the FDA are negotiating a watered down label addition which would dilute the impact of the thorough...

By: M. Robert Blanchard September 19, 2012  9:15am In an obvious effort to diversify its business away from cigarettes, Japan Tobacco has been attempting to discover, patent and market new pharmaceuticals. The Japanese edition of the Wall Street Journal reported today that the FDA has just approved a combination drug for AIDS that includes a medication, elvitegravir, discovered by Japan Tobacco.  While the new drug combination could reach sales of $2 Billion annually, Japan Tobacco has so far seen nothing but disappointment in it drug development division. A substance aimed at increasing “good” cholesterol was licensed to Roche, only to discover after clinical trials involving thousands that the medication just didn’t work. Of the many drugs that the company has studied in humans, elvitegravir is the first to be allowed on the U. S. market. The new AIDS combination drug will be sold by the California company, Gilead Sciences, Inc. The company’s pharmaceutical successes don’t yet mirror it success with cigarette sales. Their “Mild Seven” brand is a top seller in Japan and is marketed in Taiwan, Russia and Malaysia. JT is in fact the world’s third-largest tobacco company in the world. So far, they have not had to face paying damages to the victims of their product, such as is seen the multi-million dollar verdicts being rendered in the U.S. courts. Matt Schultz, a plaintiff’s attorney against tobacco...

By Cameron Stephenson September 18th, 2012  9:15am Karl Rove’s vision of tort reform may be coming to the state of Florida. The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has recently certified significant questions to the Florida Supreme Court regarding the constitutionality of damage caps in medical malpractice cases in Florida.  The caps, enacted by the Florida Legislature in 2003, limit the amount of non-economic damages, such as mental pain and suffering for example, that can be recovered by injured patients and their families in lawsuits against their healthcare providers. Proponents of the caps contend they are necessary to combat what they consider to be an ongoing medical malpractice crisis in the state, which they believe leads to increased healthcare costs and insurance premiums for healthcare providers.  However, many others question whether the Florida Legislature has overreached its authority by limiting a jury’s duty and responsibility to determine non-economic damages after listening to and weighing the specific set of facts and circumstances presented as evidence by both the plaintiff and the defendant during trial.  These opponents to the caps question how the Florida Legislature can justify limiting an injured patient’s recovery for non-economic damages based solely upon the method of injury; i.e. how can you tell a mother who has just lost her only child due to the negligence of her health care providers, that her mental...