Dallas Fort Worth Injury Lawyer Blog

For almost 20 years, federal law has required hospitals and medical boards to report doctors they discipline -- for medical incompetence, unprofessional conduct, and substandard care to the National Practitioner Data Bank.

It was designed to protect the public from bad doctors, particularly those who move to another hospital or another state to try to hide their mistakes.

The Data Bank allows hospitals and other medical organizations to see a doctor's disciplinary record before hiring him or her -- with a single, simple check instead of having to contact medical boards in every state.

Read the full story here.

Continue reading "U.S. hospitals Are Not Reporting Disciplinary Action to National Databank" »

Michael Jackson's doctor is "hanging on by a thread" and must be allowed to continue practicing medicine in order to pay for his defense on a manslaughter charge in the pop star's death, the physician's lawyers said in court papers.

Responding to a bid by the California attorney general to suspend Dr. Conrad Murray's medical license pending trial, attorneys Ed Chernoff and Joseph Low said that the effect would be devastating to the doctor who already faces a slew of financial problems.

Read full story here.

Continue reading "Michael Jackson Doctor Fights to Keep Medical License" »

Tobacco smoke contamination lingering on furniture, clothes and other surfaces, dubbed thirdhand smoke, may react with indoor air chemicals to form potential cancer-causing substances, a study found.

After exposing a piece of paper to smoke, researchers found the sheet had levels of newly formed carcinogens that were 10 times higher after three hours in the presence of an indoor air chemical called nitrous acid commonly emitted by household appliances or cigarette smoke. That means people may face a risk from indoor tobacco smoke in a way that’s never been recognized before, said one of the study’s authors, Lara Gundel.

Read the full Bloomberg article here.

Continue reading "Third hand Smoke Forms Cancer-Causing Residue Indoors" »

Los Angeles is awash in billboards and other outdoor signs advertising the weight loss treatment.

One feature of life in Southern California that's become hard to avoid is the relentless advertising for a weight-loss procedure known as lap-band surgery.

The billboards feature a willowy blond in a red tank top and the phone number 1-800-GET-THIN in huge red letters. "LOSE WEIGHT WITH THE LAP-BAND!" they say.

Read the full story here in the Los Angeles Times

Continue reading "Los Angeles Lap-Band Ads" »

It occurred to Anne Mitchell as she was writing the letter that she might lose her job, which is why she chose not to sign it. But it was beyond her conception that she would be indicted and threatened with 10 years in prison for doing what she knew a nurse must: inform state regulators that a doctor at her rural hospital was practicing bad medicine.

Read the full story at the New York Times

Continue reading "Texas Nurse to Stand Trial for Reporting Doctor Malpractice" »

In the world of fashion magazines, beauty editors have often relied on prominent dermatologists and plastic surgeons to keep them current on advances in cosmetic medicine. This relationship has benefited magazines eager for beauty scoops and doctors seeking visibility — and patients.

But now the Food and Drug Administration has cracked down on one of the most widely quoted cosmetic doctors, sending shudders through the ranks of opinion leaders in fashion publishing and vanity medicine. Read the FDA Warning Letter here. Download file

Read the full story here.

Three federal agencies -- the Food and Drug Administration, the Defense Department and the National Eye Institute -- announced last week that they are launching a three-year effort to gauge how many, and which, patients suffer troubling symptoms after undergoing the vision correction procedure called Lasik.

At the same time, the FDA issued letters reminding 17 walk-in surgical centers performing Lasik surgery of their obligation to report poor outcomes and patients' surgery-related medical complaints. The letters were issued after the FDA conducted a spate of inspections of Lasik facilities and found many had no system for collecting and transmitting to the FDA data on patients' reports of post-surgical "adverse events." More inspections are to come, the FDA said.

Continue reading "Federal Agencies to Assess Potential Lasik Problems" »

An expert panel reported that two more diseases may be linked to exposure to Agent Orange, a defoliant used by the American military during the Vietnam War.

People exposed to the chemical appear, at least tentatively, to be more likely to develop Parkinson’s disease and ischemic heart disease, according to the report. The report was written by a 14-member committee charged by the Institute of Medicine with determining whether certain medical conditions were caused by exposure to herbicides used to clear stretches of jungle.

The results, though not conclusive, are an important first step for veterans groups working to get the government to help pay for treatment of illnesses they believe have roots on the battlefield. Some other conditions linked to Agent Orange already qualify.

Continue reading "Parkinson Disease and Heart Disease linked to Agent Orange" »

Two West Texas nurses have been fired from their jobs and indicted with a third-degree felony carrying potential penalties of two-to-ten years' imprisonment and a maximum fine of $10,000.

The nurses, in their 50s and both members of the American Nurses Association/Texas Nurses Association, reported concerns about a doctor practicing at Winkler County Memorial Hospital in Kermit.

They alleged that the doctor improperly encouraging patients in the hospital emergency department and in the rural health clinic to buy his own herbal "medicines," and they thought it improper for him to take hospital supplies to perform a procedure at a patient's home rather than in the hospital.

Read an earlier post.http://www.bne.state.tx.us/

Continue reading "Update: Retaliation Against West Texas Nurses for Whistle Blower Complaint" »

During the early hours of a steamy July 2003 morning, Martin Memorial Medical Center chartered a private plane and sent 37-year-old Luis Jimenez back to Guatemala without telling his relatives in the U.S. or Guatemala — even as his legal guardian frantically sought to stop the move.

The man's guardian, also his cousin, is suing the hospital for essentially deporting Jimenez, who was an illegal immigrant. The hospital, which spent more than $1.5 million on his care over three years, says Jimenez wanted to go home.

Continue reading "Jury to Decide Negligent Deportation of Illegal Immigrant" »

The last time the government embarked on a major vaccine campaign against a new swine flu, thousands filed claims contending they suffered side effects from the shots. This time, the government has already taken steps to head that off.

Vaccine makers and federal officials will be immune from lawsuits that result from any new swine flu vaccine, under a document signed by Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius.

Since the 1980s, the government has protected vaccine makers against lawsuits over the use of childhood vaccines. Instead, a federal court handles claims and decides who will be paid from a special fund.

The document signed by Sebelius last month grants immunity to those making a swine flu vaccine, under the provisions of a 2006 law for public health emergencies. It allows for a compensation fund, if needed.

Continue reading "Legal Immunity set for Swine Flu Vaccine Makers" »

Two West Texas nurses have been indicted after filing an anonymous complaint about a doctor's practices with the Texas Medical Board, but the state agency says the women did nothing wrong.

The nurses are charged with misuse of official information. Each one-page indictment filed against them alleges they improperly accessed information that was not public "with intent to harm" the doctor for "a nongovernmental purpose."

Among the nurses' complaints were that the doctor improperly encouraged patients to buy herbal medicines from him and had wanted to use hospital supplies to perform a procedure at a patient's home.

The Texas Medical Board defended the nurses' actions and said it's the board's state-mandated duty to look into such complaints.

Continue reading "Texas Nurses Face Charges After Filing TMB Complaint " »

An investor with Matrixx Initiatives, Inc. the maker of Zicam, has filed a proposed securities class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona on behalf of shareholders of Matrixx Initiatives, Inc., who purchased Matrixx stock between December 22, 2007 and June 15, 2009, in relation to Matrixx Initiatives alleged violations of FDA regulations involving the Zicam Cold Remedy products.

Continue reading "Zicam Matrixx Initiatives, Inc. Investor Class Action Lawsuit" »

The American Nurses Association (ANA), which represents the interests of the nation’s 2.9 million registered nurses, is joining forces with the Texas Nurses Association (TNA) to strongly criticize the recent indictment and prosecution of two registered nurses in Winkler County, Texas, for reporting to the Texas Medical Board their concerns about a physician’s standard of practice at the Winkler County Memorial Hospital in Kermit, Texas.

ANA and TNA are gravely concerned about the chilling effect the county’s actions could have on future nurse "whistle blowers" who advocate for their patients in the nation’s hospitals. An initial hearing on the nurses’ motions to dismiss the case was held July 15 in the Winkler County Courthouse but no rulings were made on any of the motions.

Continue reading "Nurse Association Targets Winkler County Hospital Texas" »

U.S. District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga, who is handling the consolidated Fixodent and Super PoliGrip lawsuits filed over zinc poisoning from denture creams, issued an order designating lawyers to serve in leadership positions in the MDL, or Multidistrict litigation. These denture cream lawyers will perform services that benefit all of the plaintiffs involved in the litigation during the pretrial proceedings.

On June 9, 2009, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation centralized all federal denture cream lawsuits before Judge Altonaga in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, for coordinated discovery and pretrial litigation.

Continue reading "Denture Cream Lawsuits" »

Has a Zicam nasal cold remedy robbed you of your sense of smell, and possibly the ability to taste? If so you have probably been stricken with a condition called anosmia – loss of sense of smell, sometimes accompanied by loss of sense of taste - related to the presence of zinc gluconate in Zicam intranasal cold remedies. Like thousands of other people who have used Zicam nasal gel or swabs, you probably had no idea that these products could be so dangerous.

Matrixx Initiatives, Inc. has had to remove several varieties of Zicam nasal cold remedies from the market because of their association with anosmia. The lawyers at our firm are currently representing scores of people in personal injury lawsuits who lost their ability to smell, and in some cases taste, after using a Zicam nasal gel or swab to treat or prevent a cold.

Continue reading "Zicam Lawsuit and the FDA" »

A $31 million verdict against Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, Ohio, could be the largest jury award for a medical malpractice case in Ohio history, though a settlement agreement makes it unlikely the hospital will have to pay that much.

As the jury was deliberating, after a four-week trial before Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge Timothy O’Connell, attorneys for the hospital and the family of Leondo Stanziano worked out a settlement agreement.

Continue reading "$31 M Verdict Against Ohio Hospital Negated by Settlement Agreement" »

Is Gary Kao a renegade physician, or maybe just a doctor who was allowed to get in over his head?

Kao is the only person whom officials have identified in the unfolding scandal over substandard radioactive seed implants at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center.

As the radiation oncologist who did most of the implants, Kao played a central role. But a cast of actors supported and directed him - week after week, for six years - until the VA suspended the program a year ago.

Those actors included a medical physicist with little experience in developing implant treatment plans, a radiation-safety committee that allowed crucial radiation-dosage calculations to go undone, and Nuclear Regulatory Commission inspectors who let Kao revise two patients' treatment plans to avoid reporting medical errors, according to the Veterans Affairs investigation report.

Continue reading "Troubles at Philadelphia VA Continue" »

A Harris County Texas jury has ruled in favor of a Houston man in a medical malpractice case, awarding him $10 million in damages stemming from a lawsuit against Methodist Hospital and the doctors who treated him there.

John German developed gangrene that required the amputation of his left leg above the knee, all the toes on his right foot and all of his fingers in the aftermath of heart surgery in 2002 .

“It’s been a long time coming, but I feel vindicated,” said German, who was a 32-year-old mechanic at the time of the care.

Continue reading "Texas Patient Awarded $10 M in Medical Malpractice Claim" »

FDA has required the manufacturers of the smoking cessation aids varenicline (Chantix) and bupropion (Zyban and generics) to add new Boxed Warnings and develop patient Medication Guides highlighting the risk of serious neuropsychiatric symptoms in patients using these products. These symptoms include changes in behavior, hostility, agitation, depressed mood, suicidal thoughts and behavior, and attempted suicide. The same changes to the prescribing information and Medication Guide for patients will also be required for bupropion products (Wellbutrin and generics)that are indicated for the treatment of depression and seasonal affective disorder.

Continue reading "FDA: Varenicline (marketed as Chantix) and Bupropion (marketed as Zyban, Wellbutrin, and generics)" »

At the request of the FDA, U.S. Marshals raided generic drug manufacturer Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories, Ltd., shutting down manufacturing and seizing inventory. The action came after FDA inspections found that the drug maker was continuing to fail to meet federal safety and health requirements.

In March 2009, Caraco recalled digoxin, a heart medication, after it was discovered that some tablets distributed were thicker or thinner than they were supposed to be. This created a serious risk for consumers, as receiving too much of the drug could cause a potentially life-threatening condition known as digoxin toxicity, and receiving too little of the medication could result in injury from the underlying heart condition.

Continue reading "Caraco Digoxin Manufacturer Raided by Federal Agents" »

The following is a summary of the changes effective on June 24, 2009. Click here for the complete board rules.

Chapter 162, Supervision of Medical School Students, with amendments to §162.1 Supervision of Medical Students, which clarifies the intent of the amendment previously adopted, which became effective on March 9, 2009. The Board determined that the revised language was necessary based on questions received regarding interpretation.

Chapter 165, Medical Records, with amendments to §165.3, Patient Access to Diagnostic Imaging Studies in Physician’s Office, which expands the rule to include non-static diagnostic imaging studies and imaging studies that are maintained in electronic format. The Board determined that the rule change was necessary to clarify the definition of diagnostic imaging studies for the purpose of releasing such records to requestors for medical records.

Chapter 173, Physician Profiles, with amendments to §173.1, Profile Contents, which requires that the profile of each licensed physician shall contain the physician's full name as the physician is licensed. The Board determined that the change was necessary to allow the Board to appropriately track all physicians licensed by the Board rather than allowing physicians to identify themselves under multiple names when submitting documents to the Board.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board New Rules June 2009" »

Since its April board meeting, the Texas Medical Board has taken disciplinary action against 71 licensed physicians.
The actions included 15 violations based on quality of care; 11 actions based on unprofessional conduct; two nontherapeutic prescribing violations; six agreed orders based on inadequate medical records violations; one action based on impairment due to alcohol or drugs or mental/physical condition; four actions based on other states’ or entity’s actions; one action based on failure to properly supervise or delegate; two actions based on peer review actions; two actions based on violation of probation or prior order; one agreed order modifying a prior order; and five voluntary surrenders. Twenty-one physicians entered into administrative orders for minor statutory violations.

At its May 28-29 meeting, the board issued 526 physician licenses.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board Disciplines 71 Doctors" »

When Debbie Daniels was scheduled to undergo a hysterectomy in 2003, her doctor suggested he do a "tummy tuck" as well.

But the obstetrician/gynecologist did not tell her that he had never been trained to perform the procedure that gets rid of excess skin and fat.

She also did not know he had been kicked off the staff of another hospital for doing tummy tucks without proper credentials -- or that he did the procedure unlike any other doctor, according to court records.

Two days after Dr. David Lee Grimes cut Daniels open and stitched her back up, her wound burst, leaving a basketball-sized hole in her belly 7 to 8 inches deep, one of her lawyers said. She had to undergo emergency surgery -- the first of many -- and be placed in a medically induced coma for a month.

Continue reading "Woman Who Sued Doctor's Insurer Awarded $3.8 M" »

The Texas Medical Board entered an Automatic Suspension Order against Rodney Norman Dotson, M.D., license number D9988, on Monday, May 4, after determining that Dr. Dotson had violated a previous disciplinary order.

The February 8, 2008, Mediated Agreed Order required, among other provisions, that Dr. Dotson take and pass the Special Purpose Examination. The 2008 order also contained a provision that, after a proper hearing, if a Board panel found that Dr. Dotson had violated this term of the 2008 order, his license could be automatically suspended.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board Suspends License of Rodney Dotson, M.D. " »

The following is a summary of the changes effective on May 6, 2009. Click here for the complete board rules.

Chapter 166, Physician Registration, with amendments to §162.2 Continuing Medical Education, would allow members of the Board’s Expert Physician Panel up to 12 hours of formal continuing Medical Education for time actually spent in reviewing standard of care cases and providing a report to the board.

Continue reading "TMB May 2009 Board Rules Changes " »

A woman who said she developed ulcerative colitis from taking Accutane was awarded $10.5 million by a New Jersey jury. It was the third of 425 lawsuits alleging that Accutane caused inflammatory bowel disease in some users to go to trial. All three cases have resulted in multi-million dollar judgments against Hoffman-LaRoche, Inc., the maker of Accutane.

Approved by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in 1982, Accutane has been the subject of controversy for years. In addition to inflammatory bowel disease, the drug has been associated with myriad other serious side effects.

It was known in the late eighties for causing severe birth defects. It has also been known to cause psychiatric problems, and has been linked to 266 cases of suicide in the United States.

In addition to inflammatory bowel disease, Accutane has also been associated with problems of the liver, kidneys, central nervous system, and pancreas, as well as the cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and auto-immune systems.

Continue reading "Accutane Injury Results in $10.5 Million Judgment" »

Women who have their healthy ovaries removed when they have a hysterectomy face a higher risk of death -- including death from coronary heart disease and lung cancer -- than women who keep their ovaries, according to new research.

The finding from a study published in the May issue of the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology challenges conventional wisdom that removing ovaries along with the uterus offers the best chance for long-time survival.

Continue reading "Routine Removal of Ovaries is Questioned by New Research" »

Kaiser Permanente has agreed to pay $1 million to settle claims on behalf of five patients alleging that the HMO mishandled its kidney transplant program, endangering lives and causing deaths.

The arbitration claims were filed in 2006, found that Kaiser's Northern California kidney transplant program jeopardized hundreds of patients by forcing them into a new program unprepared to handle an enormous caseload.

Continue reading "Kaiser Permanente to Settle Kidney Transplant Claims For $1 M" »

A bill that was the subject of a 5½-hour hearing would sharply curtail the powers of the Texas Medical Board if it becomes law.

Backers argued that it would bring much-needed transparency and provide greater fairness to doctors whom, some say, the board is persecuting. They especially raised concerns about practitioners of alternative medicine and those who treat conditions such as autism.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board Subjected to Hearing" »

Reglan side effects have been associated with the development of tardive dyskinesia, a syndrome that causes involuntary movements in the body extremities, particularly the lower face. In February 2009, the FDA required that a “black box” warning about the tardive dyskinesia problems be added to Reglan and other gastrointestinal drugs containing metoclopramide.

REGLAN LAWSUIT STATUS: Lawyers are reviewing potential claims for individuals who may be entitled to compensation through a Reglan lawsuit as a result of developing tardive dyskinesia.

Continue reading "Reglan Lawsuits" »

After a 19-year-old Orange County, Calif., man killed two neighbors in 2005, the victim's survivors sued the murderer's psychiatrist, accusing him of causing the rampage by giving his client an unstable mix of antidepressants.

But California's 4th District Court of Appeal ordered summary judgment for the doctor, saying that the patient had a pre-existing mental disorder that "necessitated" treatment.

"As early as 2001, [William] Freund had exhibited violent tendencies toward his parents," Justice Raymond Ikola wrote. "And when he later became [the doctor's] patient, he already suffered from Asperger's syndrome and the consequent frustration about his extreme social problems.

Continue reading "Calif. Appeals Court: Psychiatrist Not Liable to Patient's Victims, " »

A Michigan hospital can be sued for releasing a man who killed his estranged wife with an ax 10 days later, a federal appeals court ruled.

The decision by a three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reinstates a lawsuit filed by the estate of Marie Moses Irons against Providence Hospital.

The panel cited a federal law that requires hospitals to stabilize patients if an emergency condition exists, though it couldn't find any precedent for allowing a non-patient who alleges harm to sue.

Continue reading "Mich. Hospital That Released Man Who Killed His Wife Can be Sued" »

The 3rd Circuit has ruled that children allegedly injured by vaccines are barred from pursuing any design defect claims because Congress expressly prohibited such suits in an effort to guarantee immunity to manufacturers.

By rejecting the analysis of a recent ruling from the Georgia Supreme Court, the 3rd Circuit's ruling in Bruesewitz v. Wyeth Inc. creates a direct split between the federal courts and a state's highest court on the question of how broadly courts should read the pre-emption clause in the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act.

Continue reading "3rd Circuit: Kids Hurt by Vaccines Cannot Pursue Design Defect Claims" »

A congressional study and a national consumer advocacy group found that the health care industry in 2004 had spent millions of dollars exaggerating the malpractice crisis in Nevada and elsewhere in the country.

But the hard-hitting television campaign of five years ago, helped persuade voters to overwhelmingly approve an industry-backed ballot initiative imposing a $350,000 cap on malpractice damages for pain and suffering. Advocates said the intent of the measure, patterned after 1975 tort law changes enacted in California that imposed a $250,000 cap, was to reduce multimillion-dollar verdicts against doctors, which would lower their insurance premiums and reduce health care costs for the public.

Continue reading "Nevada Attorneys Hope to Lift Malpractice Damages Cap " »

A Staten Island man stricken with polio has won a multimillion dollar lawsuit against a drug maker, claiming he contracted polio 30 years ago while changing his daughter's diaper.

Dominick Tenuto was awarded $22.5 million, believed to be one of the highest awards ever on Staten Island.

The lawsuit claims that the oral vaccine Tenuto's daughter received, which contained a live virus, passed through her body and infected Tenuto while he was changing her diaper.

The 61-year-old Tenuto, a former Wall Street executive, sued two years after contracting polio and losing his job.

The drug maker, Lederle Laboratories, plans to appeal.

The following is a summary of the changes effective on March 9, 2009.
Click here for the complete board rules.

Chapter 162, Supervision of Medical School and Physician Assistant Student, with amendments to §162.1, Supervision of Medical Students, provides for the supervision of a medical student who is not enrolled at a Texas medical school as a full-time student or visiting student.

Chapter 171, Postgraduate Training Permits, repeals §171.7, Inactive Status, repeals a provision that recognizes an inactive status of a physician in training permit.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board March 2009 Board Rules Changes" »

A Houston judge is sentencing a Beaumont cardiologist on charges he molested two girls, and although Dr. Jeffrey Klem will not receive jail time, the doctor will be placed on probation and must write a letter of apology to the girls.

Dr. Klem is receiving five years deferred adjudication on each charge of Injury to a Child. Under the terms of a plea agreement, he will not have to register as a sex offender.

Continue reading "Beaumont Doctor Sentenced For Improperly Touching Two Girls" »

Chelsie Barker, now a 10-year-old girl, needs round-the-clock attention as a result of a lack of oxygen during birth in a Michigan jail.

Jail officers are being sued in federal court, for violating the girl’s constitutional rights by not getting her mother, an inmate, to a hospital for the delivery.

Their defense is Roe v. Wade, the landmark abortion decision. Attorneys for the officers say they are not liable because the child had no 14th Amendment right before she was born.

The jail officers “had sufficient warning that the child was on the way and did not get her the medical care she needed immediately prior to, during, and after the birth,” according to the U.S. District Judge.

Continue reading "Birth Injury in Jail Leads to Lawsuit " »

According to plaintiffs' attorneys AstraZeneca PLC failed to warn physicians and patients about risks associated with its widely used schizophrenia drug Seroquel.

According to documents that were just unsealed in a U.S. federal court case showed AstraZeneca knew about the risk of weight gain and diabetes in 2000.

The company "not only failed to warn physicians and patients about the risk of diabetes but they also marketed them in a way that represented that there was no risk."

Continue reading "Seroquel Increased Risks of Diabetes" »

A class of drugs to treat stomach disorders needs a strong warning about the risk of involuntary, repetitive movement on several parts of the body seen with long-term use or high doses, according to U.S. regulators.

The drugs contain the ingredient metoclopramide and are available in various forms including tablets, syrups and injections, the Food and Drug Administration said.

According to the FDA more than 2 million Americans use the medicines to treat gastroesophageal reflux disease and other stomach ailments.

Continue reading "FDA Requires Boxed Warning and Risk Mitigation Strategy for Metoclopramide-Containing Drugs" »

Dallas based dietary supplements seller Mannatech Inc. will return $4 million to customers and its founder will pay a $1 million fine for lying about the health benefits of its products, according to the Texas attorney general’s office.

Attorney General Greg Abbott said the Coppell-based company tricked people into thinking its products would prevent, treat or even cure diseases.

Continue reading "Coppell Texas Mannatech to Pay Millions to Settle Diet-Supplement Lawsuit" »

A California jury has awarded nearly $7 million to a 56-year-old woman who was unknowingly infected with herpes by a 77-year-old man.

The lawsuit alleged that Thomas Redmond knew he had genital herpes for more than 25 years but did not disclose it before his sexual relationship began with Patricia Behr and did not use a condom.

The lawsuit claimed that Behr suffered unnecessary stress and humiliation as a result of the defendant's conduct, which it called "outrageous and beyond the bounds of decency."

Continue reading "California Woman Infected With Herpes Wins Lawsuit" »

A California doctor accused of molesting female patients during medical procedures has been ordered to stop practicing medicine until further notice.

Dr. Peter Chi, has turned in his license, according to the Medical Board of California. He previously had been ordered by a San Joaquin County judge to stay away from the Beauty Renewed Laser Skin Center, where he served as the medical director.

Chi, a cosmetic surgeon, made his first court appearance and is out on $100,000 bail. He has been charged with seven counts of sexual battery by fraud, one count of sexual battery and three counts of rape by a foreign object.

A total of eight women, said that they were violated during cosmetic surgery procedures or postoperative exams at his clinic between September 2007 and December 2008. Most of the women, who were 25 to 39 years old at the time, were unconscious while the molestation occurred.

Continue reading "California Surgeon Charged With Molesting Patients " »

DALLAS — A Bedford infectious-disease specialist has been ordered to pay $7.5 million to a former maintenance man who lost his arms and legs to an MRSA infection.

Judge Jim Jordan ordered Dr. Meenakshi Prabhakar to pay David Fitzgerald after a Dallas County jury found in Fitzgerald's favor in his medical malpractice lawsuit. Prabhakar treated Fitzgerald in 2003 when he developed an infection following surgery at RHD Medical Center in Farmers Branch. Photo courtesy of Dallas Morning News

Continue reading "Dallas Doctor Ordered to Pay Man Who Lost Limbs $7.5M " »

The Florida doctor's license was revoked in the case of a teenager who planned to have an abortion but instead gave birth to a baby she says was killed when clinic staffers put it into a plastic bag and threw it in the trash.

The doctor, Pierre Jean-Jacques Renelique, was not present when the baby was born, but the Florida Medical Board upheld Department of Health allegations that he falsified medical records, inappropriately delegated tasks to unlicensed personnel and committed malpractice.

Continue reading "Florida Doctor Loses License in Live Birth Abortion Case" »

According to federal drug officials, many doctors may lose their ability to prescribe 24 popular narcotics as part of a new effort to reduce the deaths and injuries that result from these medications inappropriate use.

A new control program will result in restrictions on the prescribing, dispensing and distribution of extended-release opioids like OxyContin, fentanyl patches, methadone tablets and some morphine tablets.

Continue reading "F.D.A. to Restrict Prescriptions of Narcotics " »

At its February 5-6 meeting, the Texas Medical Board took disciplinary action against 32 licensed physicians; in addition, the board has issued one temporary suspension since its last meeting.

The actions included 11 violations based on quality of care; seven actions based on unprofessional conduct; one mediated agreed order modifying a prior order; three actions based on other states’ actions; four actions based on inadequate medical records violations; two actions based on impairment due to alcohol or drugs or mental/physical condition; one advertising violation; and four voluntary surrenders. The board also accepted the voluntary surrender of one surgical assistant’s license.

At its February 5-6 meeting, the Texas Medical Board issued 399 physician licenses.

For further information click here.

Hospital companies in Texas, many of which collect millions in state and federal funds, operate with minimal public disclosure of deficiencies. The state keeps information on complaints and inspections largely private because influential health care corporations want it that way, and Texas legislators have obliged.

As a result, it is next to impossible for the public to determine whether state enforcement works properly. Hospital lobbyists designed much of this system.

The Texas Department of State Health Services provides, on its Web site, a small amount of data on hospital fines. The department also furnishes limited and heavily redacted violation records to anyone who makes a formal open-records request, pays in advance and sometimes waits months for delivery.

Continue reading "State of Neglect: Texas Law Lets Hospitals Hide Problems" »

The Texas Medical Board (TMB) is charged with licensing physicians and enforcing the Texas Medical Practices Act. During the 2007 session and interim, TMB has been under intense legislative scrutiny for administrative, enforcement, and licensure issues. Last session, lawmakers increased the agency’s appropriation by $3.4 million — to $18.4 million for the biennium — so it can better manage the backlog of license applications. In exchange, the board was directed to cut the average processing time for a new license to 51 days. TMB reports it has met this goal and initiated an online application process to further speed up licensure.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board Update" »

Medical malpractice reform enacted five years ago succeeded in cutting the number of lawsuits against doctors and increasing the number of physicians working in Texas.

But state medical board investigators say it also left them with an unbearable workload.

While the Texas Medical Board's staffing increased 28 percent from 112 employees in fiscal 2002 to 143 in fiscal 2008, physician and patient settlements through the board have increased 202 percent, according to the board's statistics.

In next year's legislative session, the TMB will be asking for 11 additional full-time workers to help with investigating and resolving complaints against doctors.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board Falling Behind On Complaints " »

There are 50 items on the nursing jurisprudence examination (NJE). You must correctly answer 75% of the questions to pass the NJE. You will have two (2) hours to complete the NJE. Displayed in the upper right hand corner of the computer screen will be a digital clock and the question number so you can monitor your progress throughout the NJE.

You are permitted to access the Board of Nursing (BON) website and other resource material throughout the exam to locate the answers to questions. The NJE will run in another window, thereby leaving this window open to access reference materials on the BON website.

A Passing Result will be posted and recorded to the BON system when all 50 questions are answered and a minimum of 38 questions are answered correctly. A certificate will be available for printing at the end of the examination process. Once a passing result is recorded, Board Staff will be notified and the jurisprudence exam requirement will be updated as completed in your BON file. Keep the certificate for your records. Do not mail the certificate to the BON.

Continue reading "Texas Nursing Jurisprudence Exam" »

Rule Changes Adopted
The board adopted the following rule changes that were published in the Texas Register:

Chapter 163, Licensure, amendments to §163.5, Licensure Documentation.

Chapter 165, Medical Records, amendments to §165.1, Medical Records; §165.5, Transfer and Disposal of Medical Records.

Chapter 166, Physician Registration, amendments to§166.2, Continuing Medical Education; and §166.6, Exemption from Registration Fee for Retired Physician Providing Voluntary Charity Care.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board Implements New Rules" »

Since its last board meeting, the Texas Medical Board took disciplinary action against 59 licensed physicians. The actions included 13 violations based on quality of care; two actions based on unprofessional conduct; three actions based on violations of probation or prior orders; three actions based on other states’ actions; six actions based on inadequate medical records; four actions based on impairment due to alcohol or drugs or mental/physical condition; two actions based on nontherapeutic prescribing; two actions based on failure to properly supervise or delegate; one action based on a criminal conviction; three voluntary surrenders; two violations of failure to obtain required continuing medical education; two administrative agreed orders; and 12 licensees agreed to enter into administrative orders with the board for minimal statutory violations.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board Disciplines 59 Doctors and Issues 479 Physician Licenses" »

A Florida man, who is suing two Broward County doctors for malpractice in a rare case allowing a punitive damages claim.

The man claims his plastic surgeon later lied about his detached role in the botched surgery, created two sets of medical records to hide the truth and still billed his insurance company for performing surgery.

The Broward Circuit Judge issued an order in July putting punitive damages in play, and Florida's 4th District Court of Appeal on Sept. 29 denied a petition for a writ of certiorari on the issue. The trial is set for March 2.

Continue reading "Florida Med-Mal Case With Punitive Damages Claim" »

A panel of the Texas Medical Board temporarily restricted the license of a doctor based in Conroe, after determining that the doctor’s unrestricted practice of medicine presents a continuing threat to the public welfare.

The action was based on the panel’s findings that the doctor was responsible for violations in the standard of care, nontherapeutic prescribing, prescribing to persons who were known or should have been known to be engaged in substance abuse or diversion, and his failing to adequately supervise the activities of persons operating under his supervision. These findings were made as the result of a criminal investigation involving patients who had obtained narcotics prescriptions from clinics under the doctor's medical direction.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board Temporarily Restricts Doctor's License" »

The U.S. government must pay $8.6 million in damages because a military doctor at Scott Air Force Base failed to diagnose a case of flesh-eating bacteria according to a federal magistrate judge's ruling.

The former wife of an Air Force captain, testified that she sought treatment at the base hospital emergency room for pain and swelling in her right arm in 2002.

According to court documents, the doctor was concerned the woman was a drug addict wanting a prescription, advised her to go home and take Motrin.

A month later, the situation got progressively worse and the woman was taken to the emergency room. The woman was then diagnosed with necrotizing fasciitis, a strep infection that decays soft tissue.

Continue reading "Scott AFB Doctor Liable in $8.6 M Judgment" »

More than a decade ago, Massachusetts became the first state to mandate its medical board to post physician profiles online. Patients could find a physician's hospital affiliations, hospital and medical board disciplinary actions, medical malpractice payments and other data.

The Massachusetts board's idea to display physician data on an easily accessible Web site was novel in 1996. Many physicians were skeptical in the beginning, resulting in a heated debate of how to post information that was useful to the public and fair to doctors.

"It has worked out reasonably well," said Massachusetts Medical Society President. "It is an opportunity for patients to step up and see information such as where a physician has received training, whether they are board certified, whether they have malpractice suits against them and whether or not the suit falls in what one might expect in that specialty."

Continue reading "State Medical Boards Want Transparency" »

Medicare paid a Pennsylanvia hospital $6.15 million in the 2003 to treat some of the Erie hospital's oldest, sickest patients. Now the hospital will pay $1.9M to settle a whistle-blower lawsuit that claimed the hospital submitted Medicare claims that exceeded its actual costs.

Seven hospitals have reached settlements in connection with the lawsuit, filed in 2005 by an independent hospital consultant from New Jersey. Saint Vincent is the only hospital in this region named in the suit.

Continue reading "Hospital to pay $1.9M in Whistleblower Suit" »

Diabetic supply maker Bayer Healthcare, a unit of Bayer AG, has agreed to pay $97.5 M to settle claims that it paid kickbacks to several diabetic suppliers and caused them to submit false Medicare claims, according to the U.S. Justice Department.

Bayer agreed to enter into a corporate integrity agreement -- which allows companies to continue in the federal Medicare program while requiring steps to safeguard against fraudulent behavior -- as part of the settlement, the department said.

Continue reading "Bayer Healthcare Dinged For $97.5M in Kickback Settlement" »

A panel of the Texas Medical Board has temporarily suspended the license of Eli T. Anderson, M.D., license #E6214, of Houston , after determining that Dr. Anderson's continuation in the practice of medicine presents a continuing threat to the public welfare.

The action was based on evidence the board received that Dr. Anderson tested positive for a cocaine metabolite in June, 2008, while undergoing drug testing required as a condition of his placement on five years deferred adjudication probation for possession of cocaine, a third degree felony, in Clay County, Texas, in June, 2005. In 2007, Dr. Anderson was again arrested in Lubbock for possession of drug paraphernalia. In addition, at the Board's temporary suspension hearing, Dr. Anderson admitted on the judicial record that he had used cocaine since 2002, and that he had used cocaine as recently as November, 2008.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Board Suspends License of a Houston Doctor " »

A panel of the Texas Medical Board suspended the license of Harold Clay Henderson, M.D., of Dallas, license number G3937, after determining that Dr. Henderson’s continuation in the practice of medicine presents a continuing threat to the public welfare.

The temporary suspension hearing took place Monday, October 27, under the Board’s authority, granted by S.B. 104 of the 78th Legislature, to suspend or restrict a physician’s license without notice when it determines the physician’s continuation in practice would constitute a continuing threat to the public welfare. The suspension is effective immediately.

The action was based on the panel’s finding of Dr. Henderson’s inability to safely practice medicine due to intemperate use of drugs or alcohol, or mental or physical disability. The panel also found that Dr. Henderson had aided and abetted the unlicensed practice of medicine by employing a physician in his office whose licensed was suspended.

The length of a temporary suspension is indefinite and it remains in effect until the board takes further action.

Also on Monday, a panel of the board temporarily restricted the license of Donald Delmer Pope, M.D., license #F4386, of Brownwood.

The action was based Dr. Pope’s guilty plea to a felony charge of aggravated sexual assault of a female under 14, and his receiving eight years of deferred adjudication as a sex offender. The restriction requires that Dr. Pope have no contact with any female patient under 17 and that he have an independent medical evaluation, follow the evaluating psychiatrist’s recommendations and submit the treating psychiatrist’s reports to the board.

The temporary restriction is effective immediately and remains in effect until the board takes further action.

If you have been subjected to a TMB Inquiry Letter or TMB Disciplinary Process, then please contact the Doctor Attorney Dr. Shezad Malik of Southlake, Texas. For a no obligation, free case analysis, please call 817-255-4001 or Contact Me Online.

The Texas Medical Board has named Alan T. Moore, M.D., as interim medical director of the agency.

Dr. Moore graduated with honors from the University of Texas at Austin and received his medical degree from the U.T. Southwestern Medical School, where he was a member of Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society. He completed his anatomic and clinical pathology residency at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, where he served as chief resident during his fourth year. He also completed a hematopathology fellowship at Parkland.

Dr. Moore is board certified in anatomic pathology, clinical pathology and hematopathology. He has practiced in Austin for more than 20 years and has served as president of Clinical Pathology Associates as well as on the board of Clinical Pathology Laboratories; medical director of Seton Medical Center Laboratory; chief of Staff at Seton Medical Center; and president of the Texas Society of Pathologists. He has also served as the transplant pathologist for the Seton Medical Center Cardiac Transplant Program.

The board also named Mari Robinson, J.D., interim Executive Director of the agency following the retirement of former executive director Donald W. Patrick, M.D., J.D. Robinson began her career at TMB as a litigation attorney in 2001 and has served as Director of Enforcement since 2006.

State law requires that, if the agency executive is a non-physician, a medical director be hired.

If you have been subjected to a TMB Inquiry Letter or TMB Disciplinary Process, then please contact the Doctor Attorney Dr. Shezad Malik of Southlake, Texas. For a no obligation, free case analysis, please call 817-255-4001 or Contact Me Online.

GlaxoSmithKline PLC agreed to pay $40 million to settle claims in a class-action lawsuit that it improperly marketed the antidepressant Paxil for use in children. The suit claimed Glaxo had withheld information that the drug was neither safe nor effective in this age group.

The money will be used to reimburse health plans that paid for Paxil use by children younger than 18. During litigation, Glaxo claimed that Paxil was safe and effective, and denied promoting it for children and concealing information. Glaxo denies any wrongdoing or liability.

Other health plans are suing drug makers on similar grounds, alleging they withheld information that led the health plans to unnecessarily pay for drugs. The Paxil case is the first time a drug company has agreed to pay a settlement in such a case.

At its October 9-10 meeting, the Texas Medical Board took disciplinary action against 34 licensed physicians.
The actions included three violations based on quality of care; two actions based on unprofessional conduct; one action based on violation of probation or prior order; one action that terminated a prior suspension; two actions based on other states’ actions; one action based on inadequate medical records violations; two actions based on impairment due to alcohol or drugs or mental/physical condition; five actions based on non-therapeutic prescribing; two actions based on failure to properly supervise or delegate; two actions based on criminal convictions; three voluntary surrenders; and 10 licensees agreed to enter into administrative orders with the Board for minimal statutory violations. In addition, the board issued two cease and desist orders against unlicensed individuals.
At its October 9-10 meeting, the Texas Medical Board issued 276 physician licenses.

If you have been subjected to a TMB Inquiry Letter or TMB Disciplinary Process, then please contact the Doctor Attorney Dr. Shezad Malik of Southlake, Texas. For a no obligation, free case analysis, please call 817-255-4001 or Contact Me Online.

Texas Supreme Court earlier in September, declined to hear a case on whether or not medical malpractice damage caps violate state constitutional rights.

Attorneys for the hospital industry and the Texas Medical Association (TMA) had appealed the issue directly to the Supreme Court, bypassing the court of appeals. The attorneys claim when the Legislature in 2003 approved caps on non-economic damages, it allowed such direct appeals on constitutional questions.

The patient in the district court case had contended that the $250,000 cap violated constitutional provisions such as the right to due process, equal protection and jury trials.

Continue reading "Texas Medical Malpractice Fight" »

Medical peer review is an essential component of quality patient care. The Federal Health Care Quality Improvement Act (HCQIA) of 1986 was promulgated by Congress to grant confidentiality and immunity from liability to those who conduct reviews in good faith.

All States, recognize a privilege that generally protects information generated during the review process from discovery during unrelated litigation, such as medical liability cases.

Continue reading "Medical Peer Review" »

A panel of the Texas Medical Board suspended the license of Nancy Louise Anderson, M.D., license number F7350, after determining that Dr. Anderson’s continuation in the practice of medicine presents a continuing threat to the public welfare.

The action was based on the panel’s findings of violations of a 2008 Mediated Agreed Order, which required, among other provisions, that Dr. Anderson submit to random alcohol and drug screenings to ensure abstinence; participate in Alcoholics Anonymous programs and activities; obtain an independent medical evaluation within a prescribed time period; and cooperate with Board staff. The immediate suspension of Dr. Anderson’s license was based on her violations of the 2008 order by failing to submit to alcohol and drug screenings, failing to attend AA meetings, failing to obtain the medical examination, and failing to cooperate with the Board.

The action took place on Friday, September 26. The length of an automatic suspension is indefinite and it remains in effect until the board takes further action.

If you have been subjected to a TMB Inquiry Letter or TMB Disciplinary Process, then please contact the Doctor Attorney Dr. Shezad Malik of Southlake, Texas. For a no obligation, free case analysis, please call 817-255-4001 or Contact Me Online.

At its August 27-29 meeting, the Texas Medical Board took disciplinary action against 48 licensed physicians.

The actions included 12 violations based on quality of care; six actions based on unprofessional conduct; three actions based on violation of probation or prior board order; nine actions based on inadequate medical records violations; five actions based on impairment due to alcohol or drugs or mental/physical condition; one action based on non-therapeutic prescribing; one action based on failure to properly supervise or delegate; five voluntary surrenders; one order modification; two temporary suspensions and three administrative orders based on minimal statutory violations. In addition, the board issued two cease and desist orders against unlicensed physicians. At its meeting July 25, the Texas Physician Assistant Board took action against two physician assistants.

At its August 27-29 meeting, the Texas Medical Board issued 700 physician licenses, for a total of 3,621 physician licenses issued in Fiscal Year 2008. (See previous release at http://www.tmb.state.tx.us/news/press/2008/090808a.php )

If you have been subjected to a TMB Inquiry Letter or TMB Disciplinary Process, then please contact the Doctor Attorney Dr. Shezad Malik of Southlake, Texas. For a no obligation, free case analysis, please call 817-255-4001 or Contact Me Online.