A Ray of Hope for Gay and Lesbian Spousal Benefits after DOMA Decision

On Monday, a federal judge in Philadelphia ruled that the lesbian spouse, rather than the parents, of a deceased city lawyer would receive the lawyer’s $49,000 proceeds of her firm’s profit-sharing plan. Our Galveston personal injury attorneys note that the lesbian couple had wed in Canada, which issues marriage licenses for same-sex couples. They lived in Illinois; and the attorney’s law firm was based in Pennsylvania.

The deceased lawyer’s parents had not approved of her relationship or marriage and had sued to receive the proceeds of the profit-sharing plan. But last month, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned key provisions of DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act), invalidating the federal law designed to put obstacles in the way of equal rights for same-sex married couples.

The federal judge ruled that Jennifer Tobits was Sarah Ellyn Farley’s “surviving spouse” under the terms of the profit-sharing plan following the Supreme Court’s decision. The federal judge avoided possibly sticky questions of state law by stating that state law was “only applicable to the extent it is not preempted by” federal law. And federal ERISA laws, which governed the profit-sharing plan, therefore pre-empted state laws in that matter. (Source: Joseph A. Slobodzian, phillynews.com, Philly.com, 7/29/13)

Of course, until state laws uniformly recognize equal rights for married same-sex couples, our Galveston personal injury attorneys point out that gay and lesbian spouses will still need to engage in the thorough and creative estate planning measures they’ve been relying on for decades. And they might still expect to litigate in the face of recalcitrant relatives.

This decision by a federal judge in Philadelphia is but another small step in bringing the law and its application into line with reality. But the Galveston personal injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC emphasize that the judge’s ruling does provide a ray of hope that same-sex spouses who have a valid marriage might receive the financial compensation and other benefits and proceeds to which they’re justly entitled after a partner’s tragic death. Where federal law governs cases, such as with Jones Act claims, same-sex spouses now might find a slightly easier road to the financial recovery they deserve after their tragic loss of a loved one. Click the link to read more about Jones Act claims.

Fatal Montgomery County Train Accident Kills 18 Year Old Man on Tracks

A Union Pacific train struck and killed Mr. Christopher Neves as he walked along the tracks on the way to his girlfriend’s home on Sunday. The tragic accident occurred about noon near Keith Drive and Loop 494 in the New Caney area of Montgomery County. According to authorities, Christopher Neves had headphones on and was listening to music at the time of the tragic train collision. Reportedly, the train’s horn sounded, but Mr. Neves did not leave the train tracks. He died on impact with the Union Pacific train, which was reportedly traveling 50 mph. (Source: KTRK ABC 13, 7/21/13)

The Montgomery County train accident attorneys at Denena Points, PC express their heartfelt sympathies to the family and friends of Mr. Christopher Neves.

Contact our Montgomery County Train Accident Attorneys for a Free Initial Legal Consultation if You or Your Loved One was needlessly Harmed by an Accident

Reach us at 281-369-4363 or through our online contact form. We provide a free and confidential legal consultation, without obligation, to discuss the specifics of the accident and evaluate your potential eligibility for proper compensation for your losses from the needless accident. Our Texas Board Certified personal injury attorneys never charge attorneys’ fees unless we win your case for you, so there’s no financial risk. Contact us today and put our more than 12 years of experience with complex personal injury and wrongful death accident cases to work for your family’s greater good.

68 Texans Died from Train Accidents in 2012

Data from the federal railroad authority shows that there were 790 train accidents in Texas in 2012. We emphasize that almost 6% of those accidents, or 63, were fatal accidents resulting in a total of 68 deaths. In addition, 443 injuries resulted from train accidents in Texas in 2012.

Train collisions might not be as rare as you believe. Most of them occur at rail crossings. Our Montgomery County train accident attorneys urge you to be aware of safety. Never try to beat trains at crossings, and be careful when walking along train tracks. Trains often travel at 50 mph or more, and slowing and stopping the heavy vehicles takes a long distance.

U.S. FDA Recalls Medtronic’s SynchroMed Infusion Pump after 14 Deaths

The U.S. FDA has issued a Class 1 recall, the most serious type of recall, on the SynchroMed infusion pump manufactured by Medtronic Inc. Our Pearland medical device recall attorneys mention that a Class 1 recall means that the defective medical device poses risks of serious injury or death to patients.

The SynchroMed Implantable Infusion System, an implantable medical device intended to deliver pain medications and other drugs to patients, was found to contain four defects that have led to at least 14 deaths. The most frequent harm to patients resulted from inadvertent injection of the medications into the patients’ subcutaneous tissue rather than into the pump. Our Pearland medical device recall attorneys sadly report that one patient also died from an electrical short in the SynchroMed device, and two died from blockages.

Additionally, use of the SynchroMed priming bolus to move drugs quickly from the pump to the tip of the catheter causes the medicines to mix with sterile water or cerebrospinal fluid, which can either dilute the drug or result in an overdose. The SynchroMed infusion pump could also stall or not properly deliver drugs to patients.

Contact the Pearland Medical Device Recall Attorneys at Denena Points, PC to Report Injury or Death from a Medtronic Product

Our goals are to see that the U.S. FDA receives reports of serious injuries or deaths linked to defective medical devices as soon as possible to alert the agency to the need for product recalls, and to help injured patients and their family members receive just compensation after they’ve suffered needless harm from a defective product. Contact us right away at 281-369-4363 or fill out our online report form to report a serious injury to yourself or your loved one. Let our veteran medical device injury attorneys help you win the full financial recovery you deserve after a needless injury from a defective medical device.

Several Major Medtronic Products have been Linked to Serious Injuries or Deaths

Our Pearland medical device recall attorneys note that another of Medtronic’s major products, Infuse, the spinal fusion product used to treat patients with bone deterioration in the lower back, was linked to severe side effects and complications. Medtronic was found to have paid over $200 million for the research studies and papers published in medical journals that depicted Infuse in a positive light.

An investigation of these payments by the Senate Committee on Finance reportedly found that Medtronic improperly manipulated, influenced, and/or collaborated with the authors of the studies to create a positive impression of the Infuse implant that was not warranted by the actual results of using the product.

And Medtronic, the largest maker of cardiac medical devices, was also sued over its defective defibrillators. Our Pearland medical device recall attorneys point out that the company settled that case for $268 million. Click the link to read more about the Medtronic defibrillator lawsuit and the settlement awarded for aggrieved patients and their family members.

Endo Health Agrees to $55 Million Settlement in Vaginal Mesh Cases

The American Medical System (AMS) unit of Endo Health Solutions has been hit with around 5,000 lawsuits based on painful complications and debilitating injuries resulting from the company’s vaginal mesh implants. Our Pearland personal injury lawyers note that the AMS implants include the Elevate, Apogee, and Perigee products.

Reportedly, the $54.5 million Endo AMS settlement only affects a small faction of the 5,000 lawsuits that have already been filed. The large majority of the cases has been consolidated with a federal judge in West Virginia and is still in pre-trial proceedings.

29,000 Lawsuits against Vaginal Mesh Manufacturers have been Filed so Far

So far, our Pearland personal injury lawyers point out that about 29,000 vaginal mesh lawsuits have been filed in the United States against the manufacturers of the defective implants. The plaintiffs complaints include: erosion of the mesh implants, failure of pelvic organ prolapse repairs requiring further surgeries, incontinence, extrusion of the mesh through the vagina, intrusion of the mesh into pelvic organs, pelvic pain, and painful intercourse.

Only a few vaginal mesh lawsuits have come to trial yet. Last year, a California jury awarded a woman $3.6 million for her injuries. And a New Jersey jury awarded a woman and her husband $11 million. Our Pearland personal injury lawyers mention that part of that award was compensation for the damage done to the couple’s sex life by the complications from the vaginal mesh implant.

The large number of injuries and lawsuits related to the defective implants has led some manufacturers to pull them from the market. And the FDA, after initially dragging its feet on the issue, has declared the vaginal mesh implants to pose a particularly high risk of serious injury to women. The FDA now recommends that surgeons seek other alternatives to the implants for their patients whenever possible.

Women Injured by Vaginal Mesh Implants: Contact our Pearland Personal Injury Lawyers for a FREE and Confidential Initial Legal Consultation to Learn about Your Eligibility for Financial Compensation for the Harm You’ve Suffered

Reach us at 281-359-4363 or through our online contact form to schedule your free, no obligation legal consultation. We are already accepting vaginal mesh cases to help injured patients seek the financial compensation they deserve for their needless injuries from these defective implants. In your free consultation, we could evaluate your potential eligibility for a full financial recovery for your painful injuries. Let the more than 12 years of successful experience of our Board Certified Pearland personal injury lawyers guide you down your road to recovery.

Texas Leads the Nation in the Number of Fatal Workplace Accidents

Our Texas City workplace accident attorneys mention that this past weekend marked a Remembrance Day for the 56 Houston-are workers who lost their lives to fatal workplace accidents in 2012. The remembrance vigil was part of the overall recognition offered by Workers’ Memorial Day, an international day of remembrance for fallen workers on April 28. (Source: Ryan Rockett, Houston Chronicle, 4/27/13)

This Remembrance Day comes after a spate of horrific, fatal workplace accidents that have dominated recent headlines. The fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas that claimed first responder and firefighter lives as well as the garment factory collapse that took more than 350 lives in Bangladesh are still fresh in our minds as we remember our local Houston-area workers that lost their lives on the job.

Participants in the Houston-area vigil and people who have lost relatives to fatal workplace accidents called for increased regulatory oversight of workplace safety in Texas. The Texas City workplace accident attorneys at Denena Points, PC note that their calls took place concurrently with the strident protests of Bangladeshi workers calling for government action on safety as they’re faced with government inaction and lip service in response to large numbers of worker fatalities in the nation’s busy garment factories.

Our Texas City workplace accident attorneys point out that Texas leads other U.S. states in the number of workplace fatalities. In 2011, U.S. Department of Labor data revealed that Texas was the site of 433 of the nation’s 4,693 fatal workplace accidents, almost 10% of the total. Commentators indicate lax safety standards in the construction industry along with the high-hazard occupation of oil and gas extraction as some of the reasons for Texas’ disproportionate share of the fatal workplace accidents.

Learn More about Fatal Workplace Accidents in Texas

Click the links to read about the deadly fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas and about a fire at the ExxonMobil refinery in Beaumont that seriously burned several workers.

TX Fertilizer Plant Explosion Reveals Deadly Gap in Safety Regulations

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is supposed to oversee facilities containing large amounts of ammonium nitrate, the fertilizer that exploded in West, Texas on Wednesday. The same hazardous substance was also responsible for the deadly blasts that leveled Texas City in 1947 and the Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995.

Our Pearland, Texas industrial accident attorneys note that the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards Act is the regulatory act that gives the DHS the ability to oversee the fertilizer plant in West, Texas and other facilities that store and use large amounts of the potentially explosive material.

DHS Apparently Remained Unaware of the Existence of the West, Texas Fertilizer Plant and its Ammonium Nitrate until the Deadly Explosion

Reportedly the DHS was not even aware that the West, Texas fertilizer plant existed until after it exploded, leveling several city blocks. The facility had reported to another agency last year that it had 270 tons of ammonium nitrate on hand. (According to a Reuters report, this is 1,350 times the amount of ammonium nitrate that should trigger DHS oversight.)

But our Pearland, Texas industrial accident attorneys point out that the information had not been passed along by that agency to the DHS and the fertilizer plant had also not informed the DHS itself. The DHS, once informed, would review a facility and its operations and create a safety plan.

A Byzantine Scheme of Overlapping Regulatory Authority Covered the Fertilizer Plant, Yet Still left Huge Safety Gaps, as the Explosion Revealed

The reporting oversight on the part of fertilizer plant owners and managers might not have been willful. The West, Texas fertilizer plant is subject to scrutiny and regulation by at least 7 state and federal agencies, so it might be difficult to keep track of which agencies are supposed to be told what.

This situation of confusing regulatory overlap with a lack of ultimate accountability reveals a dangerous and glaring hole in the regulatory oversight scheme. If the fertilizer plant in West, Texas was not known to DHS, there may be other such facilities that are not known. If the facility itself is responsible for alerting DHS to its presence, and other agencies with information about it do not forward that important information to DHS, our Pearland, Texas industrial accident attorneys emphasize that everyone’s safety remains at risk.

The government agencies that we must rely upon for our safety need to be reliable. They should share important information amongst themselves regarding such things as the locations at which enormous quantities of explosive materials are stored.

Some Information about Ammonium Nitrate and Anhydrous Ammonia

The Pearland, Texas industrial accident attorneys at Denena Points, PC mention that ammonium nitrate is fairly safe under most conditions. But high temperatures and high pressure can lead to explosions. And anhydrous ammonia, a gas that is often found in tandem with ammonium nitrate, can also explode at high temperature and even upon contact with water apparently. Some reports indicated that this is what might have happened in West, Texas since the fertilizer plant explosion was preceded by a fire that firefighters were attempting to quell.

The West, Texas fertilizer plant also had recent safety violations on record. For example, the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration had fined the plant over $5,000 for transporting chemicals without a proper safety plan and for lacking safety labels on some tanks. Apparently the plant had also filed a safety plan late with another agency a few years ago. (Sources: Joshua Schneyer, Ryan McNeill, and Janet Roberts, Reuters: and KPRC click2houston.com, 4/19/13

Let’s Get Serious about Safety

Relying on the companies and individuals who store, transport, and utilize hazardous substances like ammonium nitrate to report the hazards themselves clearly presents a huge safety risk to all of us. Here in Texas, particularly along the Gulf Coast and in agricultural communities, we have enormous concentrations of potentially hazardous substances stored in tanks, processing plants, and other facilities. As the West, Texas fertilizer plant explosion reveals, a combination of the right conditions could turn the materials into a deadly hazard that claims innocent lives and injures scores of others.

Our Pearland, Texas industrial accident attorneys call upon the government agencies to work together, share information, and increase our actual level of safety. The West, Texas fertilizer plant explosion provides a huge wake-up call to take real safety concerns more seriously.

Click the link to read more about the deadly fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas.

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Missing Vial of Deadly Virus: Should Researchers Experiment with Death?

Death in a little glass bottle: a vial containing a sample of Guanarito, a deadly hemorrhagic fever from Venezuela, has mysteriously disappeared from the Galveston National Laboratory on the campus of the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB).

Officials are trying to reassure those of us who might be worried by saying they think the vial might have gotten stuck to something, maybe broken on the floor of the lab, and harmlessly disposed of in cleanup. But our Galveston injury attorneys point out that the simple fact is that they don’t know what happened to the vial. And the ongoing investigation at UTMB might not turn up anything concrete either.

What was in the Missing Vial of Deadly Virus at UTMB?

The missing vial of deadly virus apparently contained less than a fourth of a teaspoon of the hemorrhagic disease Guanarito. It’s a favorite disease target for government research because it’s one of those that could potentially be used by terrorists as a weapon. Now that’s really reassuring….

The vial was kept in a locked freezer at UTMB. Employees with access to the freezer have apparently been screened by security. And officials say, for what it’s worth, that there’s been no security breach…. But last Tuesday, an investigator discovered that one of the five vials of Guanarito had mysteriously gone missing. (Source: Erin Mulvaney, Houston Chronicle, 3/24/13)

Personally, I don’t find the statement that the vial might have simply stuck to something, fallen on the floor, broken, and gotten cleaned up (all without anyone noticing) very reassuring. Does anyone remember that story The Andromeda Strain? The Galveston injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC do not want to see a real-life sequel called The Guanarito Strain.

Should the Government Experiment with Deadly Diseases?

This incident might cause you to examine the question of whether the government and its researchers should be playing with these deadly diseases like Guanarito at all. Do you remember reading a few years back about the effort to revive the deadly strain of flu that wiped out millions during the World War I era? Do you wonder what the real end results of such efforts might be? What if someone loses samples of the experimental disease? Or accidentally drops a vial at the wrong place at the wrong time?

And what about the conscientious efforts to preserve samples of smallpox after vaccines had essentially wiped out the disease across the globe? I’m probably not alone in wanting to say good riddance to such diseases and to see the very last microbe extinguished.

Our Galveston injury attorneys mention that we all have quite enough problems in life without government researchers and those with access to their laboratories creating additional challenges for us. For one thing, supplies of medications and drug therapies have an alarming tendency to become compromised by contaminants and defects. This past week just saw two major recalls of drug lots from U.S. compounding pharmacies due to visible contaminants in the medications. Read more about the latest compounding pharmacy recall scare. Click on this article by our Galveston injury attorneys.

FDA Recalls Mold Contaminated Drugs from Compounding Pharmacy Med Prep

Remember the deadly fungal meningitis outbreak last fall linked to a New England compounding pharmacy? 50 people have died from it so far, and more than 700 have been sickened by the fungal contamination.

Well, the FDA just announced that danger of another fungal contamination in drugs has been discovered. This one has been linked to a 20-year-old compounding pharmacy based in Tinton, NJ named Med Prep Consulting Inc.

Med Prep Consulting Inc. Linked to Latest Mold Contamination Recall

The contamination was found in bags of a magnesium sulfate intravenous solution at a Connecticut hospital. The Pearland, TX drug recall attorneys at Denena Points, PC emphasize that Med Prep so far says that no illnesses or injuries have been reported from the mold contamination. But administration of mold-contaminated intravenous products could lead to fatal infections in patients receiving the products. A recall has been issued for all Med Prep products distributed between February 18th and March 15th.

FDA Recalls ALL Med Prep Products due to Sterility Concerns at Manufacturing Facility

The Director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Dr. Janet Woodcock, stated that “a lack of sterility assurance” at Med Prep, along with caution, makes the FDA recall for all of Med Prep’s products necessary in order to protect patients. Lack of sterility assurance implies that Med Prep’s facility may be affected by the same widespread, visible mold and fungus contamination that was found throughout the New England Compounding Center facility last year, including in its autoclaves.

And our Pearland, TX drug recall attorneys point out that FDA records show that the agency previously warned Med Prep in 2001 and 2010 regarding sterility problems in certain repackaged drugs. In repackaging and compounding operations, the company uses ingredients from other large manufacturers. The FDA is working with the CDC and state authorities in Connecticut and New Jersey to get a handle on the scope of the new mold contamination outbreak.

Med Prep Temporarily Halting Production as a Precaution

Med Prep has entered into an Interim Voluntary Consent Order with the New Jersey State Board of Pharmacy to halt all production and distribution of its drugs during the investigation. Our Pearland, TX drug recall attorneys note that Med Prep makes anesthetics, antibiotics, cardiac medications, pain management drugs, and labor and delivery medications. The products come packaged in glass vials, plastic syringes, and infusion bags.

The recall and production stoppage at Med Prep comes just as the FDA has begun stepping up its inspections of drug compounding pharmacies in 12 states. Last year’s deadly fungal meningitis outbreak has prompted concerned lawmakers and others to call for improved oversight of drug compounding pharmacies. Clearly, that oversight, particularly regarding the maintenance of adequate sterility at facilities used to make sensitive medications, is needed.

Learn What You can do if a Contaminated Drug has Harmed You or Your Loved One

Click on this article by our Pearland, TX drug recall attorneys. And don’t hestiate to contact us if you need help after your drug injury. Reach us at 281-369-4363 or through our online contact form.

Fatal Work Injury: What are the Most Dangerous Occupations In Texas?

Generally speaking, our Pearland work injury lawyers remark that the four occupational categories with the highest rates of fatal injury in 2011 were:

• Agriculture, including farming, forestry, fishing, and hunting,
• Mining, including oil and gas extraction,
• Transportation and warehousing, and
• Construction.

Broken down into specific numerical order by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the most dangerous jobs in 2011 looked more like this:

Fishermen and related fishing workers had the highest rate of fatal work injury, at 121.2 per 100,000 full-time workers. But our Pearland work injury lawyers note that fishermen represent a fairly small percentage of the total Texas labor force, so the actual number of fatal work injuries, 40, was smaller than in many of the other categories.
Logging workers had the next highest rate at 102.4 with 64 fatalities.
Aircraft pilots and flight engineers suffered 57 deaths per 100,000 with a total of 72 fatal accidents.
Refuse and recyclable material collectors had a rate of 41.2. This is actually a very hazardous job. You may have noticed occasional news articles about the severe injuries, dismemberments, and fatal injuries that occur when workers get trapped by the moving parts of garbage trucks or crushed in the machines.
Roofers.
Structural iron and steel workers (construction).
Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers with a rate of 25.3 per 100,000 and 260 fatalities.
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers with a rate of 24 and 759 fatal injuries. This represents the highest number of actual fatalities in any of these jobs, but because there are so many truck drivers in the state, many of them dedicated to the oil and gas extraction industry, the rate is only the eighth highest.
Electrical power line installers and repairers.
Taxi drivers and chauffeurs. Our Pearland work injury lawyers emphasize that being on the road a high proportion of the time increases a worker’s risk of fatal injury in a traffic accident.

As an example of what can happen on the job, a worker at a construction site near Texas State Route 363 in Temple, Texas was climbing down a ladder into a trench when he slipped and fell on Monday. The worker was extracted from the trench on a litter and conveyed to a hospital. The worker fortunately had relatively minor injuries. The Pearland work injury lawyers at Denena Points, PC mention that accidents involving falling, slipping, or tripping account for 14% of all fatal work injuries.

Continue to Part 2 to learn how employee or contractor status and whether your employer has workers’ comp insurance could make a BIG difference to your financial recovery after a serious accident injury.