Vermont Jury Awards $800,000 for Failure to Monitor Coumadin in Medical Malpractice Wrongful Death Lawsuit

Vermont Jury Awards $800,000 for Failure to Monitor Coumadin
A Franklin County jury returned on October 30, 2008, a $800,000 verdict in a medical malpractice lawsuit to the family of a woman who died while on the blood thinner Coumadin for a history of deep vein thrombosis and a heart condition. Patients on Coumadin require close monitoring of their blood's ability to clot by a test called an INR. Her doctor failed to properly monitor her INR values and as a result, Mrs. Stone's blood became too thin, depleted of clotting factors, and susceptible to uncontrolled bleeding. After grazing her ear, she became unresponsive and was taken to the hospital where her INR was found to be 12.29, a dangerously high level. (The target therapeutic range was 2 to 3.) A CT scan revealed that she had suffered a massive intracranial hemorrhage which caused herniation of her brain. Attorney for the plaintiff was Chris Maley, Burlington, Vermont.

Facts on Senior, Fall, Injuries in Vermont

An article in the Burlington Free Press, on seniors and falls includes some interesting Vermont facts on falls...

• "One in five hip fracture patients over age 65 die within a year after surgery, and one in four have to spend a year or more recuperating in a nursing home.
• Falls are the leading cause of catastrophic injury in older adults.
• Among older adults, falls are the leading cause of injury deaths.
• More than 95 percent of hip fractures among those over 65 are caused by falling.
• Vermont has one of the highest rates of death from falls nationwide."

To read the entire article, click on: seniors who fall.

Vermont Receives $2 Million in Pfizer Settlement

VERMONT — The Barre Montpelier Times Argus carries this story regarding the multistate settlement with Pfizer: Vermont gets $2 million in lawsuit.

According to the report...

"According to the state's complaint, Pfizer's painkiller Bextra had FDA approval for use in treating arthritis and menstrual pain, but Pfizer marketed it for use treating acute pain, pain associated with surgery and for reducing use of narcotic painkillers. The state referred to these as "off-label" uses.

The FDA pulled Bextra from the market in 2005 due to concerns it increased the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Published reports from the last week show Pfizer also paying $745 million to settle personal injury claims and $89 million for consumer fraud class-action lawsuits, all dealing with Bextra or Celebrex."

Pfizer did not admit to any wrongdoing in the settlement. For more information, click on this link: Vermont's share of Pfizer Settlement.

Vermont Readies for Electronic Medical Records

MONTPELIER, VT - This Rutland Herald article, Health records swap said to save money, lives State poised to gain from new medical info exchange, describes Vermont's health information network. According to the report, the Vermont Legislature created Vermont Information Technology Leaders (VITL) in 2005 "to develop a technology plan for the exchange of health information among doctors, hospitals and other health care providers."

Eli Lilly Settles Zyprexa Inquiries for $62 Million

According to this Associated Press article, Eli Lilly settles Zyprexa inqueries in 32 states, the drugmaker announced a $62 million settlement and agreed to pay 32 states to regarding the company's marketing practices related to its top-selling drug Zyprexa. States attorneys general had accused that Lilly marketed Zyprexa for off-label uses and more... Please click on Zyprexa settlement to read the full article.

Vermont is one of 32 states involved in the settlement.

Vermont Becoming Leader in Captive Insurance Market

A Burlington Free Press article, Captive insurance conference begins in South Burlington, tells the story of Vermont's leadership in the "captive insurance" market.

"A captive insurance company is established, for example, when a corporation develops a subsidiary, which is licensed in Vermont, and uses it to provide various types of insurance to the corporate parent.... Medical malpractice is one of the most quickly growing fields for the industry..."

Bermuda and the Cayman Islands are the only two locales that are more active than Vermont in the captive insurance market.

Plaintiff's Lawyers Fight Product Liability Lawsuit Restrictions

From the Wall Street Journal, more on the Supreme Court case, Wyeth v. Levine (see previous post), which is to be heard Nov. 3, which will impact lawsuits involving defective and hazardous products. The case centers around:

"Diana Levine, a professional guitarist who lost an arm to gangrene after a receiving a shot to treat a migraine headache in 2000.

Ms. Levine won $6.8 million in her lawsuit against Wyeth, which makes the antinausea drug, phenergan, that was given to her. A Vermont jury and that state's Supreme Court found that Wyeth hadn't sufficiently warned the public and doctors about the drug's dangers if improperly injected.

Wyeth has argued that the company is protected because the Food and Drug Administration had approved its label. The government is supporting Wyeth's position, on behalf of the FDA."

See the full article here: Plaintiffs' Lawyers Fight Restrictions On Product-Liability Suits

Case Before Supreme Court Could Benefit Drug Companies in Product Liability Lawsuits

A case being appealed to the Supreme Court is being watched as a potential landmark ruling that would make it easier for pharmaceutical companies to protect themselves from product liability lawsuits according to a post on InjuryBoard.com. The original case was brought on behalf of a Vermont woman (a musician) who won a settlement against Wyeth for losing part of her arm to amputation caused by the drug being improperly injected.

Wyeth claims its product was sufficiently labeled, which included warnings about the potential risk of gangrene if the drug was improperly injected. The company has since appealed the case to the Supreme Court, creating a potential landmark ruling that would make it easier for drugmakers to protect themselves from product liability lawsuits. That’s because the majority of lawsuits against drugmakers involve the same issue, whether or not the company had proper warnings on its label. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approve these labels.

See article for more information.

Getting Started...

Just setting up this blog as a news collection and archiving resource on Vermont personal injury law, including current headline feeds. More to come. Stand by.