Personal Injury and Social Security Disability Blog

Medical Records To Carry In Case Of Emergency

In an earlier post, I referenced an article in the Dallas Morning News about medical records. Parts of that article are worth repeating. Here is a list of information the newspaper recommends people carry with them in case of an emergency:

Blood type

Up-to-date list of medications and dosages, herbal compounds and dietary supplements

Allergies and adverse reactions to medications or substances

Diseases, diagnoses and chronic conditions

Immunization record

Emergency contacts, insurance information and personal physician

Advance directives, such as a living will and an organ donor card

Want to create a Personal Health Record? Download the free "Health-At-A-Glance" form at www.mercksource.com for a list of basic information to compile. Carry a copy with you or e-mail it to an account you can access anywhere.

For online subscription sites, where you pay to keep long-term medical records and store documents and images, check out www.followme.com, www.recordsforliving.com, www.webmd.com, www.callus1st.net or www.personalmd.com.

To buy a memory chip that's programmed to help you compile a PHR, try www.medinfochip.com or www.capmed.com. To learn more about chips that can be implanted in your skin, go to www.verichipcorp.com.

Two Vioxx Cases In One Trial In New Jersey

As reported by the Associated Press, Judge Carol Higbee is sticking with her plan to try two Vioxx cases in the same trial, over objections from Merck, the manufacturer of Vioxx. Judge Higbee said the similarities in the two cases make it more efficient to try both together.

Jury selection should begin Monday in the fifth Vioxx trial. The two plaintiffs are Mr. Cona, 59, of Cherry Hill, who says he took Vioxx for more than two years before suffering a heart attack in June 2003. The second plaintiff, Mr. McDarby, 76, of Park Ridge, took it for about four years.

Their attorneys contend that the cases have enough in common to be heard in one trial, accelerating the pace with which Higbee – the lone New Jersey judge hearing Vioxx cases – disposes of a docket that has grown to 5,093 cases.

Judge Higbee said there was precedent for combining plaintiffs in mass tort cases like Vioxx, and that it would be redundant – and time-consuming – to have separate trials rehashing the same topics with the same expert witnesses from one trial to the next. She acknowledged the differences in the individual cases but said jurors would be able to cope.

So far, Merck has won two cases, lost one and a fourth is going on in Texas.

Link of the Day - Friday Fun

This Lazy Sunday video from Saturday Night Live is an instant classic. It has nothing to do with the overall purpose of this blog, but it's just plain funny. Where else can you see a combination of rap music, cupcakes, and the Chronicles of Narnia?

Link of the Day - I (Heart) Tech

Adriana Linares, one of our favorite techno.cuties, has a wonderful new blog named, enticingly, I (Heart) Tech. The blog is full of tips and tricks, and has a look that's, well, techno.cute.

Adriana runs LawTech Partners, a company that teaches lawyers and others how to live with, and make the most of, technology. She really knows her stuff, and equally important, she knows how to explain it to non-technical people. As she says at her company's site:

Practicing law can be stressful, especially for lawyers who strive to meet high expectations and tight deadlines. 

Let's face it: technology is not always simple.  But, there are simple, effective strategies that can keep technology from getting out of control.  The law is complicated enough, and the last thing a lawyer needs to worry about is how to use basic software to create a document or send a key file. 

I started LawTech Partners because I wanted to help make complicated things simpler.

Merck Found Not Liable In Federal Vioxx Retrial

According to Reuters, a federal jury said on Friday that drugmaker Merck was not liable in the 2001 death of a Florida man who used the recalled painkiller Vioxx.

The eight-person jury's verdict was the first in a federal court and the third out of more than 9,000 cases filed against Merck in U.S. and state courts claiming the company hid the painkiller's health risks.

The jury deliberated less than four hours before reaching this important decision. That seems a very short time, considering the complex scientific evidence presented during the trial.

Federal Vioxx Case Winding Down In New Orleans

As reported by the Associated Press, the retrial of the first federal Vioxx case is about to end. This is the case involving the family of Richard "Dickie" Irvin. Mr. Irvin died of a heart attack in 2001, after taking Vioxx for about one month.

The original trial, held in Houston, ended in a hung jury.

Link of the Day - Friday Fun

Thanks to my Hoosier Buddy Steve Terrell of Hoosier Daddy fame, for this fun site. It is, as Steve says, the ultimate time-wasting Web site. Do NOT click on this site if you have any work you need to do today!

Texas Vioxx Trial To Resume Tuesday

The current Vioxx trial in Rio Grande City, Texas will resume Tuesday with lawyers for the family of Leonel Garza questioning a Merck  representative. The trial is being held only one week per month to accommodate the travel schedule of Judge Alex Gabert.

The first witness the plaintiffs called is Dr. Nancy Santanello, head of Merck’s epidemiology department. She is expected to finish her testimony Tuesday.

Link of the Day - Friday Fun

This video shows, in a VERY clear way, why you should move your vehicle off the roadway and step away from it after a collision. Too many people falsely believe you must leave all vehicles in place following a collision, no matter how minor. The law in Texas, and many other states, is that you must get your car out of traffic as quickly as possible.

Vioxx Critic Denies Being Courted By Plaintiff Lawyer

As reported by the Associated Press today, a prominent cardiologist and major plaintiff witness in the first federal Vioxx trial denied Thursday that he is being courted as a litigation consultant by the attorney he has hired — a Texas lawyer leading numerous Vioxx lawsuits.

Dr. Eric Topol, in an e-mail to The Associated Press, said Thursday that plaintiff lawyer Mark Lanier had not asked him about consulting, and he would never accept such an offer. That accusation had been made by attorneys representing Merck, the manufacturer of Vioxx.