A recall has issued on all Digitek (digoxin) tablets, which may contain twice the approved level of digoxin. These double-strength pills pose a risk of digitalis toxicity, and may cause nausea, vomiting, low blood pressure, cardiac instability, bradycardia and even death. (more…)
Atty. Rick Russo is again among a very select group of lawyers who have been invited to speak at the Third Annual Trial Advocacy Boot Camp to be held on April 25, 2008. The theme for this year’s program - Part 3 of “The Mastery Series Seminars” - is “How Good Lawyers Beat Bad Faith.” In addition to gaining winning insights and how-to secrets from some of the leading lawyers in Northeastern Pennsylvania, attendees will receive 6.5 hours of Continuing Legal Education credit.
Atty. Russo is the Chairman of Rosenn, Jenkins & Greenwald’s Plaintiff Personal Injury Practice group, and he devotes his practice to representing injured people and their families.
Given the recent number of adverse reactions believed to be associated with the blood thinner, Heparin, below is a link to information regarding Heparin.
http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/infopage/heparin/default.htm
The Associated Press today reported that a contaminant has been found in batches of the blood thinner, Heparin, that has resulted in 19 deaths. (more…)
March 17, 2008
Insurer AIG Fined $9M by Pa.
By MARC LEVY Associated Press Writer
© 2008 The Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. - The nation’s largest insurer, American International Group Inc., will pay $9.1 million in penalties to Pennsylvania for filing false financial information, state insurance regulators said Monday.
The agreement also resolves allegations in a separate case that AIG rigged bids and requires the insurer to adopt procedures to improve the transparency of the commissions AIG pays to agents and brokers, the state Insurance Department said.
New York-based AIG said in a statement Monday that it did not acknowledge any wrongdoing in the settlement. It already has reached settlements in the matter with the federal government and other states.
It is the largest fine the state Insurance Department agency has ever imposed, and brings to $13.5 million the amount in penalties brought against AIG by the state over the last several years, agency spokeswoman Rosanne Placey said.
The Insurance Department also is taking part in a multistate investigation into AIG’s reporting of workers compensation premiums.
The fine is related to an alleged scheme to manipulate AIG’s financial statements in which the company paid General Re Corp. to take out reinsurance policies in 2000 and 2001. Federal authorities have said that propped up AIG’s stock price and inflated reserves by $500 million.
Separately, AIG and several of its subsidiaries were accused of conspiring with insurance brokers by submitting fake bids to create the illusion of a competitive bidding process in the excess casualty commercial insurance market.
Despite the appearance of a fair bidding process, the broker had already decided which insurer would receive a particular policyholder’s business, investigators said.
As part of the scheme, AIG paid the brokers “contingent commissions” which were not disclosed to policyholders and in return received other lucrative business, authorities alleged.
Study: Insurers Overcharging
“U.S. insurance companies systematically overcharge customers and underpay home and auto claims to pad their already-fat bottom lines, a consumer group said Thursday. The Consumer Federation of America’s insurance director, J. Robert Hunter, said insurers have enjoyed robust profits and contained losses largely by ‘methodically overcharging consumers, cutting back on coverage, underpaying claims and getting taxpayers to pick up some of the tab for risks the insurers should cover.’ Hunter’s comments came with the release of a study by Consumer Federation, Consumers Union and several other consumer organizations that said the industry’s overcharges reached an average of $870 per U.S. household during the past four years.”
Marcy Gordon, Associated Press, 1-11-08
http://www.mmsend2.com/ls.cfm?r=25635223&sid=3326760&m=419564&u=ATLA_LND&s=http://www.courant.com/business/hc-insuregouge0111.artjan11,0,7509262.story
In Brink v. Erie Insurance Group, (Pa. Super. Jan. 4, 2008), a three-judge panel ruled that a police officer’s use of patrol cars constituted regular use of a non-owned vehicle sufficient to trigger his personal insurance policy’s exclusion for use of a non-owned vehicle. The panel said it makes no difference whether the officer regularly used the patrol vehicle when injured.
The effect of the non-owned vehicle exclusion is to deny insurance coverage to you in the event of an accident, even though you may have paid your insurance company every penny of the significant insurance premiums you were charged.
If you regularly use a non-owned vehicle at your job, it is important that you immediately discuss this with your insurance agent to be sure that your insurance policy will provide you with insurance coverage. It is too late to address this issue after an accident has occurred. Protect your rights by addressing the matter before being involved in an accident.
State Farm Insurance recently amended its motor vehicle insurance policies in Pennsylvania that may result in a denial of insurance coverage in the event one family member accidentally injures another resident family member through the negligent operation of a motor vehicle. This poses serious risks in the every day situations where several family members are riding in the same vehicle, or when one child is driving his or her brothers or sisters, and a crash occurs. If you are insured with State Farm Insurance, you may wish to immediately discuss this serious problem with your agent to see if the insurance coverage exclusion can be removed from your policy. If State Farm Insurance will not remove the exclusion, you may wish to consider moving your insurance to one of the other insurance companies that does not apply such a rule.
“In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Infantino® LLC, of San Diego, Calif., is voluntarily recalling about 28,000 Lion Teethers. The plastic nose can detach, posing a choking hazard to young children.”
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General Electric is recalling 92,000 microwave combo wall ovens due to fire hazard. Included in the recall are built-in units sold under the GE, GE Profile and Kenmore brands. (more…)