Posted on August 06, 2014 in General

By: Robert Geimer

According to a new study, rates of complications during childbirth vary widely between hospitals in the U.S., suggesting that where mothers choose to deliver their babies matters.  In a new study in the journal Health Affairs, authors found that about 13% of deliveries in the U.S. involve a complication, and the rate of complication at low performing hospitals was 5 times higher than those at high performing hospitals.  Though these findings are preliminary and subject to further analysis, they do suggest that we should be looking at the things high performing hospitals are doing right and make sure they are applied across the board.  Making these “best practices” standard could avoid many unnecessary injuries and make for healthier and happier moms and babies.

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 Posted on July 21, 2014 in General

By: Robert Geimer

This year marks the 15 year anniversary of the Institute of Medicine’s landmark report that identified preventable medical errors as one of the leading causes of death in America.  However, the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Primary Health and Aging heard testimony last week that patients today are no safer than they were when the report was first released 15 years ago.  According to news reports [1], Dr. Ashish Jha, Professor of Public Health at Harvard University told the Committee that “We have not moved the needle in any demonstrable way overall.”

This is completely unacceptable.  Recent reports suggest that preventable medical errors could now be the third leading cause of death in the U.S., after heart disease and cancer.  Comprehensive reform and a culture of patient safety have to be priorities in reconfiguring the healthcare delivery system in the U.S., and it will take cooperation among physicians, hospitals and insurers to institute changes so that 15 years from now there will hopefully be far fewer preventable deaths from medical errors.

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 Posted on July 10, 2014 in General

By: Robert Geimer

According to recent reports [1], the rate of deaths and complications among U.S. women giving birth is rising.  Lack of access to prenatal care and complications from obesity and diabetes top the list of factors to blame.  The U.S. is one of only eight countries in which maternal deaths have increased, falling to No. 31 in the world, behind many European and other countries where access to healthcare is guaranteed.

We can do better than this.  We need to educate young women how to stay healthy during pregnancy and to improve access to healthcare during the all-so-important prenatal period.  Thankfully, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) provides coverage for prenatal and maternity care.  Let’s hope that as more women obtain coverage and access to quality healthcare, the U.S. can return to the top of the list of best places to have a baby.

[1] U.S. slips in world ranking as a great place to have a baby

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 Posted on July 02, 2014 in General

September 11th victims' fund attorney Kenneth Feinberg has summarized a plan to compensate victims of the defective ignition switch that was installed in 2.6 million vehicles by General Motors. This plan could speed up payments to the victims without forcing them to sue G.M. Attorney Feinberg's report describes that families of anyone injured or killed by the faulty ignition switch would receive at least $1 million.

The monetary amount a family or a victim receives is based of the victim's lifetime earning potential and if they had a surviving spouse and/or children. Though there is no cap to the amount of money G.M. would pay under Attorney Feinberg's plan, those seeking compensation will have to provide sufficient evidence that the faulty ignition switch was a primary factor in the cause of death or injury.

This approach to a General Motors compensation fund, however, may not work for all those looking for retribution for loved ones lost. There are still others independently pursuing their cases but the legal process could be lengthy.

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 Posted on June 26, 2014 in General

By: Robert Geimer

We sometimes forget that medicine is big business.  According to the AMA, physicians generated $1.6 trillion in economic activity in 2012 [1].  However, one investigation has revealed that physicians with unusual billing patterns more frequently face discipline by state medical boards.  A report by ProPublica [2], shows that disturbing number of physicians abuse billing systems, though disciplinary agencies are ill-equipped to uncover this abuse.  In fact, the study cites a Chicago Tribune report that a single neurosurgeon claimed half of all the most expensive billing office visits by neurosurgeons in Illinois in 2012.

What is clear is that physicians who are more concerned about lining their own pockets put patients at risk.  This type of fraud is not only outrageous, it endangers the public.  We need to take a hard look at billing abuse and equip disciplinary agencies to track down those who enrich themselves at the expense of the rest of us.

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 Posted on May 28, 2014 in General

By: Timothy Tomasik

Over the last 25 years, a doctor’s assets in a medical malpractice action have almost never been at stake.  The Illinois Trial Lawyers’ Association has studied insurance data and has definitively shown that the “lawsuit crisis” is a myth.  Medical malpractice is a leading cause of death and injury in the United States, injuring an estimated 180,000 and killing tens of thousands of Americans annually.  Preventing malpractice in the first place is the best way to avoid malpractice litigation.[1]

Experts studying medical malpractice insurance companies have concluded that “while insurers and other tort reforms proponents blame malpractice litigation for the hard market premium increases, they are in fact consistently driven by the insurance companies’ response to the broader economic cycle.”[2]  State insurance regulators, including the former acting director of the Illinois Division of Insurance, agree.[3]

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 Posted on May 12, 2014 in General

Tim Tomasik, Partner at Tomasik Kotin Kasserman, will be speaking on the proper evidentiary uses of NTSB Reports and Underlying Findings at Trial at the American Bar Association’s Aviation National Institute in New York City on June 5, 2014.  Tim Tomasik is the Co-Chair of the ABA Aviation Law Committee and a member of the Institute’s Planning Committee.

A number of top aviation trial attorneys from around the country will gather to put on a day long program that focuses on cutting edge developments in aviation litigation including the Legal Regulatory and Insurance Implications of Space Tourism.

The Keynote Speaker for this year’s program is Brian M. Jenkins, Ph.D., one of the world’s leading authorities on terrorism and sophisticated crime.  President Clinton appointed Mr. Jenkins to the White House Commission on Aviation Safety and Security.  He will be speaking on the current terrorist threat to commercial aviation and a fundamental review of four decades of aviation security.

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 Posted on March 24, 2014 in General

By: Daniel M. Kotin

Initial reports from the O’Hare Airport CTA Station indicate that operator fatigue and speed may have been factors in the 2:50 a.m. derailment of the CTA Blue Line train at that station on March 24, 2014. As lead counsel in multiple commuter train derailments in the past, we have seen that operator error in failing to reduce speed is a common cause of a train leaving its tracks and crashing.  In 2005, two women were killed and 117 injured when a Metra train failed to reduce speed at a track crossover causing it to leave its tracks and crash into a bridge.  Despite all of the automated technology, primary control of train movement and speed still remains the responsibility of the train operator. Initial witness reports from the early morning derailment at O’Hare indicate that the train entered the station at a far greater speed than usual.  If these indications are proven true, a primary cause of the derailment may lie with the operator. Although no consolation to the 30 people reported injured, the fact that this derailment took place at 2:50 a.m. during a time of light commuter traffic may have prevented a much more catastrophic tragedy.  As lead counsel of a claim involving another CTA Blue Line derailment in 2006, the injuries numbered in the hundreds since the derailment took place in a CTA tunnel just outside the Loop during rush hour on a Tuesday afternoon.  Investigation of that derailment revealed that track maintenance was the primary cause. Despite the fact that lawyers for injured passengers still must prove negligence on the part of the CTA and/or its employees in order to recover money damages for these victims, the task of doing so is made easier by the fact that Illinois law places a heightened responsibility on public transportation operators to avoid injuries to its passengers.  As a common carrier, the Chicago Transit Authority owes the “highest duty of care” to safely transport members of the public who use its trains and buses.

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 Posted on March 19, 2014 in General

By: Tim Tomasik

The tragic disappearance of Malaysia Flight 370 has resonated with people around the world and reminds us all of the great importance of aviation safety.  Just yesterday, a helicopter crashed and burst into flames near the Space Needle in Seattle, tragically killing two on board.

On October 15, 2013, Spirit Airlines Flight 165, an Airbus A319 transporting 150 passengers, experienced mechanical difficulties and smoke filled the cabin shortly after takeoff.  An engine on the Atlanta-bound flight sustained an explosion and failed before returning to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport for an emergency landing.  The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) stated that it was an “uncontained” engine failure, meaning that broken pieces and parts of the engine escaped the outer engine housing.  This is a highly unusual and dangerous occurrence.

Passengers aboard the Airbus A319 reported that they heard an explosion and saw flames come up the side of the plane, lighting up the interior as smoke filled the cabin.  One passenger reported: “I saw the engine blow up on the outside of the plane, fire and all that.  I’m thinking to myself, I see this on the movies.  I’m usually on my couch eating popcorn.  This would never happen to me.  And here I am 25,000 feet above the ground and this is happening to me.”

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 Posted on February 12, 2014 in General

By: Robert F. Geimer

U.S. commercial and cargo planes have either landed or attempted to land at the wrong airport at least 150 times since the early 1990s, according to an AP search of government safety data and news reports.  For what is supposed to be the safest means of transportation, this number is deeply troubling.  Just last month a Southwest Airlines 737 landed at the wrong airport in Missouri.  The pilots in that case told investigators they mistook runway lights at the wrong airport for the correct airfield 7 miles away.  Had another plane been on the runway, it could have ended in disaster.  There is no excuse for a commercial aircraft to land at the wrong airport.  Pilot and airline safety groups, along with the NTSB and FAA need to look into this problem and come up with ways to make sure it never happens again.

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