I Want to Speak to the Attorney

Every day, we get calls where a client insists on speaking to an attorney.  Sometimes they are new potential clients and sometimes, they have been a client for a long time.  We strive to return every call every day and make our attorneys as accessible as possible.  But where you find good lawyers, you find very busy lawyers.  And where lawyers are busy, efficiency matters.  So when is it ever appropriate to call and demand that an attorney get on the phone?

Perhaps an analogy is appropriate here.  Do you ever call up the doctor’s office and demand to speak to the doctor right now?  Do you ever walk in and demand to see him immediately?  Have you ever seen a doctor without some person that works for him take your vital signs and triage you?  Lawyers, the good ones that are busy, don’t work any different than doctors.  The job of the lawyer is to diagnose and treat the legal problem.  To diagnose each problem, he or she needs some basic information.  And every second spent getting basic information that the lawyer’s staff is paid to obtain, is a second less that the lawyer can concentrate on hearings, trials, depositions, and other important “treatment” for the solution.

So next time you call a lawyer’s office, instead of saying “I want to talk to a lawyer now,” perhaps you would actually get quicker diagnosis and treatment, if you would allow the lawyer’s office to work as efficiently as it is designed to do, and allow the assistant, receptionist, or paralegal to get the basic needed information so that an efficient solution can be provided.  

California woman wins $28 million against Kaiser Permanente

A young California woman who lost her leg and won a $28.2 million lawsuit against Kaiser Permanente said Thursday she hopes the verdict will bring reform against the managed care giant and empower patients to question their treatment.

“I truly hope that this is going to make a change in health care reform,” said Anna Rahm, a 23-year-old Cal State Northridge student.

“However, I know that it takes so much advocacy and so much passion,” she said. “We went into this with an initiative hoping that no matter the outcome, we wanted to get our story out there for everyone to be able to relate to and to learn from.”

A jury on Wednesday found that Kaiser Permanente was liable for mishandling Rahm’s medical treatment, resulting in the loss of her right leg, half of her pelvis and parts of her spine. The jury awarded Rahm the $28.2 million for future medical expenses, future loss of earnings, and pain and suffering after a four-week trial in Los Angeles Superior Court, according to her attorneys.

In response to the verdict, Kaiser issued a statement Thursday saying it was evaluating the outcome of the case.

“Although we understand the jury’s findings and wish only the best for Ms. Rahm, highly respected medical experts testified that the medical care provided was appropriate,” according to the statement. “We will be evaluating in the days ahead how best to respond to this verdict.”

Rahm was 16 years old when she began experiencing lower back pain. A chiropractor urged her to see her physician for an MRI. But according to court documents, her physician, Dr. Charlene Huang, who specializes in adolescent health at Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills, told Rahm and her mother, Lynnette, she could not authorize the test. Rahm was referred to another physician, Dr. Ngan Vuong, who according to court documents noted that the young woman was experiencing pain down her leg and was unable to sleep. Instead of a diagnostic test, Vuong prescribed an epidermal injection and antidepressant, according to court documents.

Between March and June of 2009, Rahm’s family repeatedly requested an MRI from their treating physicians but both doctors refused to order any diagnostic exams. The complaint also said physicians failed to document the MRI request in the medical records.

Neither physician has had administrative penalties issued against them, according to licensing information by the California Medical Board.

When Kaiser Permanente agreed and the MRI was done on July 2, 2009, it revealed that Rahm had an aggressive tumor mass in her pelvis known as osteosarcoma. Rahm underwent chemotherapy, then surgeries lasting a total of 22 hours which resulted in the loss of her right leg.

Rahm’s attorneys said Kaiser Permanente’s refusal to give her an MRI not only resulted in the loss of her leg, but also was an example of medical negligence. Her attorneys said the physicians’ refusal to authorize the MRI was an example of Kaiser trying to keep costs low.

One of Rahm’s attorneys, Michael Bidart, said he hopes the verdict will change the way Kaiser provides health care to its members.

“The hope is that they will allow their doctors to do prompt imaging and diagnosis without having an institutional bias against getting MRI,” Bidart said. “There are a lot of good doctors at Kaiser, including the surgeon who did a magnificent job on her.”

But the same surgeon could have done more to help her, had the MRI been done earlier, Bidart said.

Bidart also noted this is one of the few cases of its kind involving Kaiser to be presented in front of a jury.

“We were able to avoid arbitration,” Bidart said. “When juries are able to see this, they are offended.”

For Rahm and her family, the verdict helped to cast light on an injustice.

“In our minds and in our hearts, it was important for justice to be done.” Lynnette Rahm said. “We felt she had been wronged. Monetarily, it could never be corrected. For years and years, Kaiser had been telling us, ‘We’ve done everything right.’ This was the greatest verdict of all.”

She agreed that after the MRI detected cancer, her daughter received great care at Kaiser.

“The doctors who came afterward were wonderful,” Lynnette Rahm said. “They saved her life. We love them. It goes to show we’re not against Kaiser or against all doctors. We’re against doctors who don’t do their jobs.”

Now that the trial is behind her, Anna Rahm said she plans to continue pursuing her degree at CSUN in child and adolescent development. She said she already visits children and teens who are hospitalized and frightened.

“When I ended up surviving cancer, I felt I needed to help children in the hospital, because I was helped after my diagnosis,” said Rahm, who has been cancer-free since 2010. “I felt as though it was important for me to give back. I just feel I know they benefit from what I’m giving to them and I can benefit from what they are giving me.”

If you or a loved one have become victim to medical negligence, contact Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A. today by going to http://www.cglawms.com or by calling 601-948-8005 for a free consultation.

How To Prep For Workers Compensation

The reality tv show “Doomsday Preppers” is about families who are preparing for the end of the world.  Everyday ordinary people who believe that life as we know it will end due to earthquakes, nuclear war or cyber-warfare, or some other disaster.  What’s remarkable is that the preppers are prepared for catastrophes that may or may not ever happen. 

We can learn from the preppers.  Maybe we don’t need to prepare for global earthquakes, but the way preppers know exactly what to do in moments of crisis is something positive we can all apply in our own lives.

At Chhabra and Gibbs, we regularly meet people during their times of crisis and it is our privilege to represent them.  But, like the preppers, it is important to know what to do before a crisis ever occurs.

If you are involved in an accident at your workplace or feel any pain while you are working, the first thing you should do is report it to your boss.  Tell your supervisor or your boss that you’ve been hurt—even if it was your own fault, even if it seems minor.

Accident = Tell your boss.  Even if you don’t think you’ve been injured in the accident = Tell your boss.

Sometimes a worker will be performing everyday ordinary tasks at their job and they will feel pain somewhere in their body. 

Pain = Tell your boss.

After you’ve reported your injury, seek medical treatment.  You have a legal right to medical treatment. We will work with you throughout your treatment process to get you the care and compensation that you deserve.

Do not quit or resign from your job.  If your doctor has taken you off work or given you light or medium duty, abide by your doctor’s instructions.  If your employer refuses to accommodate your restrictions, you should still continue to abide by the restrictions your doctor has given you.

If your doctor has cleared you to work and you do not have a job, search for a job.  This is good for your life and good for your claim.

If you feel that you have a workers' compensation claim, contact Chhabra and Gibbs, P.A. today for a free consultation by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com or by calling 601.948.8005.

The Workers’ Compensation System Is Broken And It’s Driving People Into Poverty

There’s a good news & bad news situation for occupational injuries in the United States: Fewer people are getting hurt on the job. But those who do are getting less help.

That’s according to a couple of important new reports on how the system for cleaning up workplace accidents is broken -- both because of the changing circumstances of the people who are getting injured, and the disintegration of programs that are supposed to pay for them.

The first comes from the Department of Labor, which aims to tie the 3 million workplace injuries reported per year -- the number is actually much higher, because many workers fear raising the issue with their employers -- into the ongoing national conversation about inequality. In an overview of research on the topic, the agency finds that low-wage workers have disproportionately high injury rates, and that injuries can slice 15 percent off a person’s earnings over 10 years after the accident.

There are two main components to the financial implications of a workplace injury. The first is the legal status of the people getting injured. A staggering number of workers in the construction industry are misclassified as independent contractors, which means they’re not entitled to workers' compensation payments. Also, more of them are employees of temporary staffing agencies, who tend to be less well-trained and less likely to report their injuries. Businesses will often contract out their most dangerous work, which allows them to keep their own workers' compensation premiums to a minimum.

The second component is the degradation of workers' compensation programs themselves. That issue is addressed by the second report out Wednesday, from ProPublica and NPR, which looks at how employers have lobbied states to get out of paying as much as they used to in workers' compensation, leaving injured workers with inadequate treatment.

Since 2003, the investigation found, 33 states have weakened their workers' compensation regulations, scaling back the procedures that will be covered and the duration for which benefits are offered. In addition, while businesses often push for reforms on the grounds that workers' compensation costs are out of control, data shows that premiums are lower than they’ve been at any point since the early 1990s.

Somebody ends up paying for those injuries, though: taxpayers. When a worker ends up unable to work because of an injury, he or she can be covered by Social Security Disability Insurance, a program that has steadily increased in cost over the past two decades. The rise has many demographic factors behind it, but it looks like the abdication of responsibility by employers may have played a role as well.

The Department of Labor has tried to tackle the misclassification problem -- which contributes to unsafe workplaces, and prevents those who are injured from getting help -- by aggressively pursuing employers abusing the system. But there’s not much they can do about the decline in workers' compensation coverage. That’s something states are going to address themselves -- over employers’ strong objections.

Has your employer been ignoring your workers’ compensation case? Are you having problems getting your paychecks or receiving medical treatment after you’ve been injured in a work-related accident? It might be time to hire a good Mississippi workers’ compensation lawyer to fight for you. If you feel that you have a workers’ compensation claim, contact Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A. today by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com or calling 601-948-8005. 

Ashley Furniture faces $1.76M in fines after OSHA finds more than 1,000 worker injuries

In a three-and-a-half year period, 4,500 employees at Ashley Furniture Industries Inc., in Arcadia, Wisconsin experienced more than 1,000 work-related injuries. One worker became another terrible statistic when he lost three fingers in July 2014 while operating a dangerous woodworking machine without required safety mechanisms in place. Of the injuries recorded, more than 100 were caused by similar machinery.

After the incident, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration conducted an inspection of the facility. Investigators identified 12 willful, 12 repeated and 14 serious safety violations at Ashley Furniture's Arcadia location, carrying a total of $1,766,000 in penalties. The company has also been placed in the Severe Violator Enforcement Program for failure to address these safety hazards. OSHA previously cited the Arcadia facility in 2014 after an employee suffered a partial finger amputation.

"Ashley Furniture has created a culture that values production and profit over worker safety, and employees are paying the price," said U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. "Safety and profits are not an ‘either, or' proposition. Successful companies across this nation have both."

Dr. David Michaels, the assistant secretary of labor of occupational safety and health, said, "Ashley Furniture intentionally and willfully disregarded OSHA standards and its own corporate safety manuals to encourage workers to increase productivity and meet deadlines. The company apparently blamed the victims for their own injuries, but there is clear evidence that injuries were caused by the unsafe conditions created by the company. OSHA is committed to making sure that the total disregard Ashley Furniture has shown to safety stops here and now."

Forbes lists Ashley Furniture Industries, a furniture manufacturer with worldwide distribution, as the 117th largest private company in America. With annual revenue of $3.85 billion as of October 2014, the company employs about 20,000 workers at 30 locations nationally. The Arcadia plant is also the largest employer in Wisconsin's rural Trempealeau County, with a population of about 30,000.

The 12 willful and 12 repeated violations were cited after OSHA found that the company did not take the necessary steps to protect its workers from being injured by moving machine parts. It did not prevent machines from unintentionally starting when workers were performing tooling and blade changes on woodworking machinery, and also failed to provide adequate safety mechanisms to prevent contact with those moving parts. These types of violations are among the most frequently cited by OSHA and often result in death or permanent disability.

A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law's requirement, or with plain indifference to employee safety and health. OSHA issues repeated violations if an employer previously was cited for the same or a similar violation of any standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years.

OSHA also cited Ashley Furniture Industries for 14 serious violations, including not training workers on safety procedures and hazards present when servicing machinery. The company also lacked adequate drenching facilities for workers exposed to corrosive materials; it committed three electrical safety violations, and it did not equip some of its machines with readily-accessible emergency stop buttons.

An OSHA violation is serious if death or serious physical harm can result from a hazard an employer knew or should have known exists.

Ashley Furniture Industries, Inc., has had 33 federal OSHA inspections and 23 state plan inspections since 1982. In its 33 previous inspections, OSHA issued citations for 96 serious, four repeat and 38 other-than-serious violations. Four inspections were initiated as a result of finger amputations, with Arcadia's 2014 incident being the most recent.

If you or a loved one have experienced any type of injury or death while working for Ashley Furniture or any other employer that has violated OSHA guidelines, contact Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A. by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com  or calling 601-948-8005.

Xarelto Leads to Bleeding Injury or Death

As a result of the drug makers’ failure to adequately warn about the risks associated with the anticoagulant, financial compensation may be available through a Xarelto lawsuit for individuals who have experienced:

• Internal Bleeding or Gastrointestinal Bleeding
• Brain Hemorrhage
• Hemorrhagic Stroke
• Wrongful Death from Bleeding Problems

To review whether you, a friend or family member may have a Xarelto case against the drug makers, request a free consultation today.

Xarelto Bleeding Problems

Xarelto was introduced in 2011, as a joint product developed by Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Pharmaceuticals subsidiary and Bayer Health Care.

The anticoagulant has been used by millions of Americans to reduce the risk of stroke, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism and other blood clot injuries. It has been prescribed to individuals with non-valvular atrial fibrillation, following knee and hip replacement surgery and to prevent recurrence of clots.

While all blood thinners carry a risk of internal bleeding, Xarelto appears to be associated with a much greater risk than the manufacturers indicated in warnings provided for consumers and the medical community.

In many cases, Xarelto bleeding problems cannot be controlled by physicians, due to the lack of an approved reversal agent.

Johnson & Johnson and Bayer promoted Xarelto as a superior alternative to warfarin, which has been the go-to anticoagulation therapy for decades.

Although the manufacturers have indicated that the newer drug requires less frequent monitoring than warfarin, increasing evidence suggests that blood monitoring on Xarelto may reduce the bleeding risk. In addition, it appears that information was withheld about the lack of an effective Xarelto reversal agent to stop bleeding problems that may develop.

While doctors are able to reverse the effects of warfarin quickly if bleeding occurs, Xarelto bleeding is often uncontrollable, increasing the risk of serious injury or death.

Xarelto warnings fail to properly address the increased risk for these serious and fatal bleeding problems, despite a substantial number of adverse event reports and other findings suggesting that individuals taking Xarelto have more gastrointestinal bleeds and need more transfusions.

In addition to the inadequate warnings, Xarelto does not appear to provide sufficient benefits to justify the additional risks. Therefore, many lawsuits allege that a Xarelto recall should be issued, claiming that the medication is unreasonably dangerous and defective without an effective reversal agent.

Allegations in Lawsuits over Xarelto

Claims raised in the Xarelto litigation are similar to many of the allegations brought against Boehringer Ingelheim over their related anticoagulant, Pradaxa.

Following the filing of thousands of lawsuits over failure to warn about the risk of bleeding problems with Pradaxa, Boehringer Ingelheim agreed to pay more than $650 million in mid-2014 to resolve the litigation. Similar compensation may be available through Xarelto settlements, as it appears that Bayer and Johnson & Johnson also withheld important safety information about their drug.

Among the allegations raised in Xarelto injury lawsuits being pursued by individuals nationwide, plaintiffs claim Johnson & Johnson and Bayer:

• Failed to provide accurate warnings about the risk of Xarelto bleeds;
• Withheld information about the lack of an effective Xarelto reversal agent;
• Engaged in aggressive marketing that encouraged doctors to use the more expensive and more dangerous drug;
• Sold an unreasonably dangerous and defective drug as it was initially formulated;
• Failed to update warnings, issue a “Dear Doctor” letter or issue a Xarelto recall after it became clear that a large number of users were suffering severe and life-threatening injuries from uncontrollable bleeding.

Rather than withdrawing Xarelto from the market or taking steps to ensure accurate information was provided for consumers and the medical community, Johnson & Johnson and Bayer continued to promote the medication as safe and effective, causing millions of additional Americans to be exposed to a risk of serious injury.

The lawyers at Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A. are reviewing individual bleeding injury claims and potential Xarelto class action lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson and Bayer.

The makers of Xarelto appear to have placed their desire for profits before consumer’s safety, by failing to properly research the risk of bleeds on Xarelto or provide adequate information about the serious and potentially life-threatening health problems that may be caused by use of Xarelto.

For families of individuals who died as a result of these bleeding problems, damages may be available through a Xarelto wrongful death lawsuit.

The drug makers stand to generate substantial profits due to their decision to provide inaccurate and incomplete warnings. Xarelto has been estimated to be the 19th best-selling drug in the world by 2018, with sales expected to reach $3.7 billion per year.

Rather than allowing the drug makers to benefit from this behavior, lawsuits over Xarelto bleeding problems seek to hold the pharmaceutical companies responsible for injuries suffered by former users. In addition, pursuing Xarelto litigation may also prevent similar behavior in the drug industry.

If you or a loved one have been affected by the drug Xarelto, contact Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A. today for a free consultation by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com  or calling 601-948-8005.

Takata Airbag Class Action Lawsuit

A class action lawsuit has been filed in federal court alleging that Japanese auto supplier Takata Corporation supplied Honda, GM, Toyota, BMW, Chrysler, Ford, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Subaru, and Mazda car manufacturers with potentially defective airbags that may rupture on activation, spraying shrapnel at drivers and passengers. The lawsuit has been brought against Takata, as well as a host of auto manufacturers whose vehicles may contain the potentially defective airbags.

Nearly 8 million vehicles equipped with the airbags have been recalled in parts of the United States. The number of recalled vehicles may continue to rise as reports of injuries and deaths resulting from exploding airbags continue to surface, some as recently as October. To date, the alleged defect has been linked to four deaths and over 140 injuries in the U.S.

According to the New York Times, the recalled airbags allegedly rupture, causing them to explode when activated. The rupturing has been linked to the propellant inside the airbag’s metal inflator, which is intended to burn slowly, causing the airbag to inflate on impact. In extreme circumstances, the allegedly faulty propellant burns aggressively, causing the inflator to explode and shoot metal fragments through the airbag’s fabric at drivers and passengers.

The class action lawsuit follows an investigation into Takata airbags launched by the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration in June. The NHTSA issued a Consumer Advisory on October 22, 2014, urging owners of potentially affected vehicles to “act immediately on recall notices to replace defective Takata airbags.” According to the Advisory, reports of injuries and death allegedly resulting from Takata airbags date back to early 2013.

According to a New York Times September investigative report, Honda learned of the alleged defect in 2004, when an airbag exploded in a Honda Accord in Alabama. The report states that what Honda deemed an “anomaly” soon mushroomed into a series of recalls, the first of which took place in 2008, when Honda recalled approximately 4,200 vehicles potentially containing defective airbags. The NY Times report also states that incident reports continued to be filed with Honda, and alludes to the fact that questions remain as to how these incidents were in turn reported to the NHTSA and other federal auto regulators. To date, Honda has issued nine recalls concerning the Takata airbags in Honda and Acura vehicles. Of the approximately 8 million vehicles recalled, about 5 million are Honda vehicles.

In connection with its ongoing investigation, the NHTSA has requested that Honda, Ford, Chrysler, BMW, Mitsubishi, Mazda, Nissan, and Toyota participate in voluntary field service actions, or regional recalls. According to correspondence sent to the NHTSA from these automakers, though each has agreed to conduct the field service actions, none have stated that a defect exists in any of the recalled vehicles. The regional recalls require automakers to recall certain model year vehicles registered in Florida, areas near the Gulf of Mexico and Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Louisiana, and Hawaii, as well as Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and Saipan.

According to the NHTSA, these regions are of particular concern to Takata and the automakers, as high humidity and resulting moisture may damage the ammonium nitrate compounds inside the airbags’ inflators, which may cause them to rupture.  The NY Times reports that Takata has been unable to pinpoint the precise cause of the defect, and that the company has put forth several explanations for the explosions, including poor oversight of manufacturing plants in Mexico and Washington state.

According to the NY Times, with the number of recalled vehicles already at 7.8 million and rising, supply of replacement airbags cannot meet consumers’ demand. The October NY Times article goes on to state that carmakers, unwilling to provide loner cars except in extreme circumstances, are finding solutions that U.S. Senators have deemed “troubling, dangerous,” and potentially illegal. Toyota has taken to disabling airbags in the absence of replacements, and they are advising against using the passenger seat in recalled vehicles altogether, the NY Times reports.

Are you concerned your vehicle may be included among the recalled vehicles? If so, the NHTSA suggests visiting the car manufacturer’s website, using your VIN number to check the NHTSA or the other electronic databases, and responding to any communications directly from the manufacturer.

According to the NHTSA, the following vehicles may be a part of the Takata airbag recalls:

BMW: 627,615 total number of potentially affected vehicles

2000 – 2005 3 Series Sedan

2000 – 2006 3 Series Coupe

2000 – 2005 3 Series Sports Wagon

2000 – 2006 3 Series Convertible

2001 – 2006 M3 Coupe

2001 – 2006 M3 Convertible

Chrysler: 371,309 total number of potentially affected vehicles

2003 – 2008 Dodge Ram 1500

2005 – 2008 Dodge Ram 2500

2006 – 2008 Dodge Ram 3500

2006 – 2008 Dodge Ram 4500

2008 – Dodge Ram 5500

2005 – 2008 Dodge Durango

2005 – 2008 Dodge Dakota

2005 – 2008 Chrysler 300

2007 – 2008 Chrysler Aspen

Ford: 58,669 total number of potentially affected vehicles

2004 – Ranger

2005 – 2006 GT

2005 – 2007 Mustang

General Motors: undetermined total number of potentially affected vehicles

2003 – 2005 Pontiac Vibe

2005 – Saab 9-2X

Honda: 5,051,364 total number of potentially affected vehicles

2001 – 2007 Honda Accord)

2001 – 2002 Honda Accord

2001 – 2005 Honda Civic

2002 – 2006 Honda CR-V

2003 – 2011 Honda Element

2002 – 2004 Honda Odyssey

2003 – 2007 Honda Pilot

2006 – Honda Ridgeline

2003 – 2006 Acura MDX

2002 – 2003 Acura TL/CL

2005 – Acura RL

Mazda: 64,872 total number of potentially affected vehicles

2003 – 2007 Mazda6

2006 – 2007 MazdaSpeed6

2004 – 2008 Mazda RX-8

2004 – 2005 MPV

2004 – B-Series Truck

Mitsubishi: 11,985 total number of potentially affected vehicles

2004 – 2005 Lancer

2006 – 2007 Raider

Nissan: 694,626 total number of potentially affected vehicles

2001 – 2003 Nissan Maxima

2001 – 2004 Nissan Pathfinder

2002 – 2004 Nissan Sentra

2001 – 2004 Infiniti I30/I35

2002 – 2003 Infiniti QX4

2003 – 2005 Infiniti FX35/FX45

Subaru: 17,516 total number of potentially affected vehicles

2003 – 2005 Baja

2003 – 2005 Legacy

2003 – 2005 Outback

2004 – 2005 Impreza

Toyota: 877,000 total number of potentially affected vehicles

2002 – 2005 Lexus SC

2002 – 2005 Toyota Corolla

2003 – 2005 Toyota Corolla Matrix

2002 – 2005 Toyota Sequoia

2003 – 2005 Toyota Tundra

For more information concerning the Takata airbag recalls, contact Chhabra & Gibbs today for a free consultation by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com  or calling 601-948-8005.