Mississippi Injury Lawyer Blog

Nursing home minimum liability insurance bill killed by Mississippi Senate committee

In an update to a previous post, the Mississippi Senate killed a bill in committee that would have required Mississippi nursing homes to carry $500,000 liability insurance. Amazing. Well, it appears that Sid Salter is going to do some investigative reporting on why it was killed. Read his blog posting about the issue here. Hopefully, he will be able to shine some light on the motivation of those responsible for killing a bill that was needed for the protection of the elderly in Mississippi.

I hope those responsible for this bill being killed sleep well knowing that if your parents or grandparents in nursing homes across the state are injured or abused, there is a possibility the nursing home will not have insurance to cover the injuries. Says a lot about how we treat the elderly.

Reported by Robert Kisselburgh, Mississippi Injury Lawyer

Senator Durbin's critique of calls for medical malpractice reform

This clip is worth watching as Senator Dick Durbin tears apart the mantra heard from some in Washington D.C. that the first thing we need is medical malpractice reform, not health care reform.

Big rig trucks and bus drivers banned from texting while driving

U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced today that drivers of commercial vehicles, including large trucks and buses, are banned from texting on handheld devices while driving. About time! Those who break the law are subject to civil or criminal penalties of up to $2,750. Unfortunately, the rule did not go far enough.

As I previously posted, the rule should have included texting on the on-board computers on the big rigs. These computers have become prevalent on tractor-trailer rigs and using these devices while driving is just as deadly as texting on a hand-held device. Hopefully, this will be the next step in increasing the safety of those on our public roadways.

Reported by: Robert Kisselburgh, Mississippi Tractor Trailer Injury Lawyer

McGwire comes clean about steroid use

Mark McGwire has finally admitted to using performance enhancing drugs during his years playing baseball, including 1998 when he broke Roger Maris' single-season home run record. While he should be commended for coming clean on his past behavior, it does not wipe the slate clean. As the great Dick Vitale said as a fan of the game, McGwire's career can be summed up in one word: "fraudulent." While McGwire says he took steroids for health reasons and did not take them for performance enhancing reasons, it does not take away from the fact that his use of steroids gave him an edge--whether it allowed him to play more games or hit the ball better. And it puts an asterisk on his career. Period.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all. Enjoy the music and light show from my favorite Christmas band, Trans Siberian Orchestra.

Attorneys beware--watch out for those subrogation liens.

Two days ago, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a summary judgment where a plaintiff's attorney was found liable to the ERISA health plan for settlement funds he disbursed. A fellow blogger, Health Plan Law, has a great discussion of the case here.

For those with personal injury lawsuits, if your health insurance company pays for your medical and you ultimately recover money from the person who caused those injuries, your health insurance company has a subrogation lien for the amount of medical paid. That means you could possibly have to pay the insurance company for the amount it paid for medical expenses you ultimately recovered from the liable party.

In the case above, the client did recover monies and the attorney disbursed the settlement funds without paying the insurance company back for the medical it paid on behalf of the client. The plan ultimately sued the client and attorney for the money. Lesson to all parties. Prior to settling a personal injury case or disbursing funds from a personal injury settlement, make sure you have paid all liens.

Reported by: Robert Kisselburgh, Mississippi Accident Injury Lawyer

NHTSA appears to have dismissed previous claims of unexpected acceleration in Toyota vehicles

Previously, I wrote about Toyota's record recall of a number of vehicles due to unexpected acceleration. At first, the acceleration was attributed to the floor mat. However, it appears something more serious is causing the problem and investigators are finally looking into the cause.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a federal agency whose mission is to save lives, prevent injuries, and reduce vehicle-related crashes, is charged with protecting the public, not the auto manufacturers. But according to a recent L.A. Times article, since 2001 more than 1,000 Toyota and Lexus owners reported their vehicles suddenly accelerated, many times resulting in injury. However, NHTSA dismissed many of those complaints for a variety of reasons. Even though NHTSA recently changed its course and is calling the Toyota issue a "very dangerous problem", the Times article paints a different NHTSA under the previous administration.

Hopefully NHTSA will be more vigilant in living up to its mission statement in the future. With the recent turn of events, it appears headed in the right direction. Read other articles about this issue below.

Runaway Toyota cases ignored
Toyota Acceleration Problem Still Unresolved
Safety Agency Rebukes Toyota Over Floor-Mat Issue

If you have been injured as a result of a defect in your car or truck, contact an experienced Mississippi product defect lawyer. At the Kisselburgh Law Firm, we have years of experience in successfully prosecuting product defect cases. Contact us at 877-601-4040 or contact us online.

Tort reform myths debunked

Anthony Tarricone, president of the American Association of Justice, wrote a good article debunking the top 5 myths regarding medical negligence and the need for more tort reform. If we are going to debate the issue, then let's get the fact straight. The fact is that more tort reform will do nothing to protect those patients injured by a doctor nor reduce the costs of health care. Check out the previous post here to read a great article discussing the cause of increase medical costs.

Senior U.S. District Judge William Wayne Justice died today at the age of 89. Appointed to the federal bench in 1968 by Lyndon B. Johnson, William Wayne Justice was at the forefront of many civil rights decisions in Texas. In the 1970s desegregation case, he ordered Texas to desegregate the state's public schools. In 1980, he ordered sweeping changes to the state's prison system. His official biographer, Frank Kemerer, said he was "perhaps the single most influential agent for change in the 20th-century Texas history." An article in the Austin Statesman gives a good summary of Judge Justice's career.

I had the distinct privilege of trying a sexual discrimination case in his court in 1997. He took senior status soon thereafter and moved to Austin to be closer to family. He will be missed by many. I think the quote from the Austin Statesman summed it up best when they said:

Now, Justice's historic gavel has been silenced. But its mighty sound will reverberate through Texas forever.

Tort Reform debate is a red herring in Mississippi and other states

Over the last couple months, the "Tort Reform" debate has heated up again. With Washington looking at health insurance reforms, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and their many mouthpieces are talking about the need for more tort reform. Folks, it's a red herring. The high cost of health insurance is not due to out-of-control lawsuits brought by evil plaintiff attorneys. The facts prove it.

One of the great myths perpetuated during these tort reform debates is that doctors are practicing defensive medicine because they are afraid if they don't run the test, they will be sued. This myth was busted by a number of reports showing defensive medicine is motivated more by profits for doctors who are making money when they send patients for medical imaging. The New Yorker ran a great piece about the high costs of medical care in McAllen, Texas, the Dallas Morning News reported on the increase of medical imaging in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex and doctor discussed his first-hand experience with over-utilization as a patient.

Indicative of the myth is a great exchange between local two McAllen, Texas doctors in the New Yorker article:

"McAllen is legal hell," the cardiologist agreed. Doctors order unnecessary tests just to protect themselves, he said. Everyone thought the lawyers here were worse than elsewhere.

That explanation puzzled me. Several years ago, Texas passed a tough malpractice law that capped pain-and-suffering awards at two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Didn't lawsuits go down? "Practically to zero," the cardiologist admitted.

"Come on," the general surgeon finally said. "We all know these arguments are bull---t. There is overutilization here, pure and simple." Doctors, he said, were racking up charges with extra tests, services, and procedures.

Another great myth perpetuated during the tort reform debate is that doctors are leaving the state due to out of control lawsuits. This was a big one used by Mississippi's governor. However, facts prove otherwise. A recent article reported there was no decrease in the number of doctors in Mississippi. It stated, "Information compiled by the American Medical Association ... shows that the number of physicians in Mississippi rose steadily in years leading up to tort-reform legislation in 2004, and even slowed its increased following 2004."

So let's put the "tort reform" punching bag away and get down to studying the true problems of our health care system and the need for reform.

h/t: ThePopTort.com has a number of articles on this issue at here, here, here, and here.

Information provided by Robert Kisselburgh, Mississippi Accident Injury Attorney