Hip failures caused by faulty medical implants will cost taxpayers, employers, insurers and others billions in the coming years, experts say.

A recent News York Times article discussed the very high costs associated with victims of failing artificial hip prostheses. The story is particularly compelling for me because I represent a number of local people who are suffering horribly with medical complications caused by defective hip prostheses:

• A Hammondsport, N.Y.,  man who had the misfortune to receive the DePuy A.S.R. hip prosthesis that was recalled last year by its manufacturer, Johnson & Johnson. This poor fellow has already suffered through several surgeries in an unsuccessful attempt to replace the defective hip prosthesis but he continues to suffer significant ongoing complications.
• A Bath, N.Y., woman who also had the DePuy A.S.R. hip prosthesis and who is suffering dramatically elevated chromium and cobalt levels in her blood.
• Two women, from Corning, N.Y., and Big Flats, N.Y.

Although prosthetic devices can fail for a number of reasons (poor design, improper materials, improper installation, etc.), these particular cases involve hip prostheses that failed because of their metal-on-metal design.  Metal wear due to metal grinding on metal causes small flakes of metal debris to contaminate both the artificial joint and the patient’s bloodstream. This metal wear causes premature failure of the hip joint itself and has the nasty effect of causing all sorts of medical complications due to the metal contamination.

It is important to note that in our cases we are NOT claiming that the doctors who performed the surgery to implant the prosthesis were negligent. Our claims are against the manufacturers like Johnson & Johnson, who released a defectively designed product without performing appropriate long-term testing or otherwise confirming that the prosthesis as designed was safe.

The New York Times story points out a staggering toll from this failure:

• “Until a recent sharp decline, all-metal implants accounted for nearly one-third of the estimated 250,000 hip replacements performed each year in the U.S.
• Some 500,000 people have received an all-metal replacement hip!
• “Medical and legal experts estimate the hip failures may cost taxpayers, insurers, employers and others billions of dollars in the coming years.”
• Lawsuits and complaints against the makers of all-metal hip replacements have passed the 5,000 mark.
• Private insurers are warning patients that they plan to recover their expenses from any settlement money the patients receive, and Medicare expects to try to recover its costs, too.

The New York Times reporter also answers readers’ questions about the story here. And there is also a graphic here that explains why the implaints fail.

If you or someone you love in Elmira, Corning and the Twin Tiers has an artificial hip, be sure they are checked by their medical doctor to see whether they have an all-metal implant that could cause them major medical complications.

Thanks for reading.

Thanks, Jim

_________________________________

James B. Reed
NY & PA Injury & Malpractice Lawyer
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
Mailto: jreed@zifflaw.com
Office: (607)733-8866
Toll-Free: 800-ZIFFLAW (943-3529)
Web: www.zifflaw.com
Blogs: NYInjuryLawBlog.com and
NYBikeAccidentBlog.com

Woodwworkers should look into investing in a table saw from SawStop.

As an avid woodworker (my wife says too avid!) and injury lawyer who has seen way too many people hurt in way too many ways, I am always concerned about woodworking safety.

I have an uncle who is a constant reminder of what can easily happen when working in the workshop. My uncle is a good, safe, competent woodworker who is missing a good portion of a finger because of a woodworking accident that happened literally in the blink of an eye. He wasn’t doing anything unsafe and was doing what he had done hundreds of times before, but nonetheless he lost a big chunk of a finger.

In my quest for greater safety, I recently purchased a new table saw featuring a finger-saving technology called SawStop.  Essentially, this is a saw that has an incredible technology built into it that causes the whirring saw blade to be stopped in milliseconds if there is any contact between the blade and skin.

Sure, the SawStop saw costs a little bit more than other comparable table saws, but when you consider the pain, disability and whopping medical bills that result from a table saw accident, that small additional expense is chump change.

I bought my SawStop from Brian Kita of Hermance Machine Co. in Williamsport, PA. Brian was awesome to deal with and he had this to say about the SawStop saw:

We handle a lot of manufacturer’s products here, and I have to tell you, this is the only product line we carry that makes such a difference in our customers’ lives. They sell through recessions and they sell when schools have no budget money. People have come to us straight from the emergency room with bloody bandages covering what’s left of their fingers to write me a check for a SawStop. I’ve taken calls from pros angry that they need a cartridge that seemingly blew for no reason, only to have them call back and excitedly tell me that as they wrote out the purchase order, they found a small smear of blood from where they contacted the blade but never even felt it. Yeah, SawStop has something unique, and they could probably charge a whole lot more for it, but I’m grateful that they don’t.

Having now assembled my SawStop saw, I am pleased to report that not only does it feature incredible safety technology, it is also, by far, the most precision-machined, well-engineered piece of power woodworking equipment I have ever owned.

My point of this post isn’t intended to serve as an advertisement for SawStop — it is intended to reach out to my woodworking friends to encourage them to very carefully consider ALL aspects of safety, which would include consideration of the latest, greatest safety technology.

The alternative — doing nothing, using an old, unsafe table saw — is not wise. According to an October story by The Associated Press, the U.S. government says about 10 people EACH DAY lose a finger or get their hand mangled by unsafe table saws! That is remarkable!

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has started looking for ways to reduce injuries. The agency estimated there were more than 67,000 blade-contact medical injuries in 2007 and 2008, costing more than $2 billion.

Table saw makers say those numbers don’t reflect the new products like SafeSaw. So we’ll keep track of this story and watch for newer figures from the government!

In the meantime, be safe out there!

Thanks for reading.

Thanks, Jim

_________________________________

James B. Reed

NY & PA Injury & Malpractice Lawyer

Ziff Law Firm, LLP

Mailto: jreed@zifflaw.com

Office: (607)733-8866

Toll-Free: 800-ZIFFLAW (943-3529)

Web: www.zifflaw.com

Blogs: NYInjuryLawBlog.com and

NYBikeAccidentBlog.com

Related articles

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It's up to you to be vigilant when you or someone you love faces surgery!

As a New York medical malpractice lawyer who has handled “wrong-site” surgery cases, I wasn’t too surprised to see the news report that estimates that 40 times a week (that’s more than 2,000 times a year!), doctors mistakenly operate on the wrong site.

Huh, the wrong site? Yup, that happens when a doctor is supposed to operate on a RIGHT knee and he operates on the LEFT knee. Or the doctor was supposed to operate on the left eye and he operates on the right. Can you say “Ooooooppppsss”?

But this is NOT funny. The victims of wrong-site surgery suffer all the dangers of surgery (bleeding, infection, scarring, disability, etc.) with none of the benefits of the surgery they were supposed to receive. In fact, many times, the patient is so weakened by the wrong-site surgery that they don’t have the strength to undergo the surgery they were supposed to have.

The Washington Post reported this week that seven years after the Joint Commission, the group that accredits our nation’s hospitals, unveiled mandatory rules to prevent surgery errors, the problem may actually be getting worse!

The good news is that progressive hospitals and doctors are implementing strategies to combat wrong-site surgery, according to the report. Some strategies are simple: require the doctor to physically mark the site of the surgery during the pre-operative preparation; make both doctors and nurses double-check one another as to the proper site of the surgery, and so on.

Medicare is also creating a very strong incentive for doctors and hospitals to ensure that they do not perform surgery at the wrong site by refusing to pay any of the expenses associated with the incorrect surgery. Nothing like hitting someone in the pocketbook to make them pay attention!

And finally, the prospect of an expensive medical malpractice lawsuit is also a strong deterrent to this sloppy mistake that simply shouldn’t occur. In NY and PA, where I routinely practice, it is medical malpractice for a doctor to perform surgery at the wrong site because the standard of care for proper surgical practice always requires the surgeon to confirm the proper site for surgery BEFORE operating.

According to the Washington Post report, based on state data, Joint Commission officials estimate that wrong-site surgery occurs 40 times a week in U.S. hospitals and clinics. In 2010 alone, 93 cases were reported to the accrediting organization, compared with 49 in 2004.

“Attention to the problem comes at a time of increased focus on the broader issue of medical errors, which a recent study found affected one-third of hospital patients,” the report said.

The federal government recently introduced a program aimed at reducing medical mistakes, the Post reported. Medicare requires reporting and does not pay for wrong-site surgery, and many insurers have followed suit, the Post added. Next year, Medicaid will begin a similar policy.

Wrong-site mistakes have multiple causes, experts told the Post: mixing up the left and right sides; operating on a patient who was accidentally given test results belonging to someone else; marking the incorrect vertebrae in spinal surgery; neglecting to mark the site at all. Some occur even though a member of the surgical team thinks something might be wrong but fails to speak up, fearful of slowing the process or challenging the surgeon in charge.

Please remember when you or someone you love is facing surgery – be watchful and ask questions!

Thanks, Jim

This article discloses an important truth about the medical malpractice system, which allows patients to seek redress after health care mistakes. The money that is paid out in medical malpractice claims is a very, very strong incentive for doctors and hospitals to improve their methods. Medical malpractice claims aren’t just reactive – they have a proactive effect on health care.

The Wall Street Journal article, “What the Doctor Missed: Using Malpractice Claims to Help Physicians Avoid Diagnostic Mistakes, Delays” by Laura Landro, looks specifically at diagnostic errors. We have all heard horror stories about doctors who have fallen asleep while performing surgery or been under the influence of drugs or alcohol while practicing. Diagnostic errors may be more subtle, but the results can be just as devastating. Think of the breast cancer victim who believes a lump is just a cyst, or the person with a rare blood disorder that dies with it undiagnosed because specialists didn’t share information. These aren’t cases of bad or evil doctors. They’ve probably saved the lives of many other patients. The problem is, when these doctors do slip up, there’s lives at stake.

Let me outline some of the key points of the article:

1. Diagnostic errors are rampant and costly. Landro’s article reports that, according to studies of resolved claims, diagnostic errors make up 40 percent of malpractice cases, and cost an average of $300,000 to settle.
2. Malpractice claims are a driving force behind the development of new diagnostic methods, equipment and tracking systems. Doctors are looking into any effective means for identifying potential problems and carefully following up with patients. Some are trying electronic alerts, while others are using checklists to follow tried and true methodology.
3. Mistakes in diagnosis are far too frequent, and reflect core problems in our health-care system. Primary-care doctors are overloaded with patients and paperwork. Test results are lost. Follow-up exams aren’t ordered. It’s discouraging, but Landro points out that hospitals and insurance companies are pressing for improvements because they don’t want to face frequent claims.

When you hear someone complain or theorize that malpractice claims are driving up the cost of health care, think about the efficiencies and improvements our system has brought about.

Medical malpractice claims can be good for medicine, good for the patients that rely and trust in their physicians, and good for the doctors who need reliable systems of managing and tracking an unbelievable amount of patient information.

Thanks for reading,

Christina Sonsire

NY & PA Injury & Malpractice Lawyer
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William Street
Elmira, New York 14902-1338
csonsire@zifflaw.com
Office: 607.733.8866
Toll-Free: 800.ZIFFLAW (943.3529)
Web: zifflaw.com
Blog: NYInjuryLawBlog.com

From the Elmira Star-Gazette, Feb. 19, 2010:

“Most Americans agree we need health care reform. What we do not want is for the government to take over the industry. Start with tort reform. Doctors are paying six-figure checks for malpractice insurance a year, and these figures increase yearly, as do all our premiums. The reason Washington does not want to address this problem is most of them are lawyers (with friends who are lawyers) getting rich on malpractice law suits.

The second problem to tackle is the sale of insurance across state lines (you can buy insurance only from a company within your own state). Open up the lines – its called competition – which in turn make you sharpen your pencil when you quote your goods.

Next – jobs. Unemployment’s hovering around 10 percent; we tried to spend our way out time and time again, but it does not work. Cut taxes across the board. If we Americans have more, we spend more. Consumer spending creates jobs. It’s time we stand up to the corruption once and for all. Maybe its time we elected some people that actually live the life the people now in Washington so want to control.”

- Pat O’Donnell

To counter Mr. O’Donnell assertions, I can begin with the results of a comprehensive study published by University of Connecticut Law Professor Tom Baker.  He revealed that the cost of all malpractice claims in the United States – including legal fees, insurance costs, and payouts – amounts to less than one-half of 1 percent of all U.S. health care spending.

I’d also like to share this CNN clip of Senator Richard J. Durbin making a strong, compelling argument against the Republican push for malpractice reform:

Simply put, lawsuits are not to blame for our health care system’s deficiencies – they are simply political scapegoats.

Malpractice claims actually decrease spending by encouraging doctors to perform properly, avoiding costs associated with caring for people injured by their mistakes.

Moreover, tort reformists want to shift responsibility from private insurance companies to taxpayers.

According to the Institute of Medicine, 98,000 people die from malpractice each year.  Currently, victims are compensated by negligent doctors’ insurance companies.  By limiting doctors’ exposure to lawsuits, victims will have to look to public entities to cover future medical treatment, lost wages and physical and occupational rehabilitation.

Yes, that’s right– if you limit recoveries in lawsuits, the medical costs will be borne by YOU the taxpayer rather than the medical malpractice insurance carrier!

Although tort reform has the potential to save money – by allowing doctors to save negligible amounts of money in insurance premiums – it is much more likely to lead to increased costs for the rest of us.

As I mentioned, my cousin and I have many opinions in common, but this is a subject on which we diverge. I’m sure Mr. O’Connell will agree with me in an appreciation of a healthy debate!

Thank you,

Christina
________________________________
Christina Bruner Sonsire, Esq.
NY & PA Injury & Malpractice Lawyer
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William Street
Elmira, New York 14902-1338
csonsire@zifflaw.com
Office: 607.733.8866
Toll-Free: 800.ZIFFLAW (943.3529)
Web: zifflaw.com
Blog: NYInjuryLawBlog.com

Roy A. Mura, posted about the new law on his excellent blog, Coverage Counsel.

Roy gives a very technical explanation, but the real gist of it is that this new law will prevent health insurance carriers in N.Y. from getting away with their historic practice of “double dipping.”

You can check out Roy’s detailed analysis of the new bill in his post “New York State Legislature Passes New Anti-Subrogation Law.”

Below is my less technical explanation of what this new law means to the average person.

What is subrogation – and what’s so bad about it?

As a concept, think of subrogation as you paying someone else’s debt and then your attempting to collect from the person that originally owed the debt. No problem if you do it fairly, but insurance companies have been adding their own twist to the idea.

An example would be: You know Jim owes Mary $40. You run into Mary, she mentions your friend Jim’s debt and you pay it. Then you ask Jim for the money. Fair enough. But what if Mary also asked Jim for the money again? And he paid it again? If he paid you back too, he’d be out $80. Mary would end up with $80 – twice the amount she risked!

The analogy is close to what the insurance companies have been doing for years. First, they charge you HUGE premiums for your health coverage. Then, if you get hurt, and you successfully pursue a personal injury case, they tell you you have to pay them back for the health bills they paid on your behalf!

So essentially, you pay for coverage and then when you use the coverage that you paid for, they say they should get reimbursed IN FULL from YOUR money!

Thankfully, this law will stop this horrible double dipping. I am just glad that the whole health care debate is finally shining a spotlight on some of the egregious past practices of health insurance companies!

Thanks again to Roy A. Mura for his detailed posting about the anti-subrogation bill and his permission to link to it from the NY Injury Law Blog.

Thanks for reading,

Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Lawyer
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

I believe the question, and my reply, will resonate with many readers – especially during this time of high unemployment in New York and Pennsylvania. With the e-mail writer’s permission, I have put together this post in the hope that it will inform readers with the same worries.

Hi Jim,

I was reading your article online and was wondering if you might be able to point me in the right direction here, or advise on what kind of lawyer I need to find (there are so many different kinds!) …

If a couple has no health insurance and they get into a catastrophic health issue, like a major disease or accident, what happens financially? Would they be forced to liquidate their house and/or retirement accounts, and other savings?

Could someone’s entire wealth be wiped out? Or would there be reasonable payment plans or other recourse?

Who could “force” them to liquidate anyway? If they owed the doctors and hospitals six figures, could they just pay what they can each month? Can the hospital/doctors “force” them to liquidate their life savings? Does that happen often?

Thanks,

Rick

Dear Rick:

You ask a truly great question. To answer your question bluntly: Yes, uninsured folks can be financially devastated by the staggering costs of medical treatments.

The bottom line is that my law partner, who is a bankruptcy lawyer, tells me that approximately 75% of all the bankruptcy cases he handles are because of HUGE uninsured medical expenses.

Contrary to conventional wisdom, these folks filing for bankruptcy are good, hard-working folks who merely had the misfortune of getting sick.

Medical providers, just like any other creditor, can pursue a judgment against you for their unpaid bills and once they get that judgment they can collect by all the typical collection methods – wage garnishment, liens against your home, etc.

I am sorry to be the bearer of such bad news, but your question brings in to sharp focus just how important it is for people to have health insurance.

Thanks,

Jim

Even though our exchange may not have offered the answer my reader hoped for, I was glad to share the response, and I hope it gives him something to work with.

I feel that it is important to share what I have gleaned from 20-plus years as a personal injury and medical malpractice attorney in New York and Pennsylvania, so I encourage readers of this blog to e-mail me with questions. I may not always be able offer good news, but forewarned is forearmed.

Thanks for reading,

Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

You’re nodding in agreement, I bet. But do you truly realize what that means? Some common standards of business ethics go by the wayside when it comes to insurance companies and claims.

I just read a great blog post, “My First Experience with Adjuster Law‏” by Myrtle Beach trial lawyer David Swanner. He does a fantastic job of describing some of the methods insurance company adusters use to manipulate plaintiff attorneys.

Insurance companies manipulate facts

Swanner writes about the first time he met a Geico “super adjuster” who came to wrap up a bunch of cases all at once. The adjuster didn’t pore over the claimants’ medical records or study their demands. She glanced at the files and came up with one snap reason after another why she didn’t think the cases were valid.

Seeing this happen to five cases in a row, Swanner realized something every personal injury attorney and every accident claimant needs to know: the insurance company will look for any plausible reason to NOT PAY a settlement.

Here are some examples of things adjusters might say about your claim:

• You went to the doctor too quickly. You must be faking an injury.
• You waited too long to see the doctor. You must not have a real injury.
• You’re too young. Your injury will go away.
• You’re too old. Your health problems don’t stem from the accident, but from pre-existing conditions.

It’s kind of like the fairytale about Goldilocks – except insurance adjusters are determined to NEVER declare anything “just right.”

Insurance companies manipulate people

The Ziff Law Firm has a newsletter, “Legal News You Can Use” (sign up to receive your copy here). In the Spring 2008 issue, we featured a story about an insurance company that placed investigators undercover in a church support group to spy on a couple with an accident claim! Unbelievable.

I deal with insurance company BS every day. I know that you have to combat their tactics with the honest facts and the hard work of preparing a strong case. They have adjusters and lawyers on their side – shouldn’t you have an attorney working for your best interests on your side?

Thanks for reading, Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

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There’s a tool your doctor or hospital can use that could make your chances of dying after surgery drop by 40 percent. The same tool could even reduce your risk of post-surgery complications by more than 30 percent.

It’s not a fancy laser or high-tech diagnostic machine. It’s a simple checklist! All it requires is your surgical team’s commitment to making sure every item is checked off before, during and after your surgery.

The checklist was the result of a World Health Organization research project. The findings were that 19 simple steps – many of them real no-brainers such as “Confirm the patient’s identity, surgical site and procedure,” or inventorying the instruments after the procedure – significantly improved patients’ chances of a smooth recovery.

Medical malpractice can be the result of oversight, the skipping over of details that are important but may be mundane. The checklist offers a simple solution to a serious problem.

The Jan. 14 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine reported on the research project. Click on the title to read the entire “Elements of a Surgical Safety Checklist.”

Thanks for reading, Jim

_________________________________________

James B. Reed, Esq.

Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney

Ziff Law Firm, LLP

303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902

Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062

Toll Free 1-800-943-3529

mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

The NY Times had a great article today discussing Medicare “Never Events”. These are events that should NEVER occur in a proper medical setting. In other words, if the medical providers are doing what they are supposed to be doing, these events should NEVER, EVER occur. And if they do occur, Medicare is saying that they will no longer pay Dr’s or hospitals for medical bills associated with these “Never” conditions. In other words, if the Dr’s or hospitals screw up and hurt someone, Medicare is saying the Dr’s or hospitals don’t get paid.

Hallelulah! Now that makes sense– instead of the medical providers getting paid more when they screw up, now they get paid nothing when they screw up. I certainly embrace this as a step in the right direction as it will create a huge financial incentive for the medical profession to implement procedures to ensure that “never events”, never occur.

So, what is a Never Event? Here’s the list from the NY Times:

Looking over the list of events that should NEVER occur, I am not surprised to see many of the types of events for which I have handled medical malpractice cases over the last 20 years–

– hospital falls because proper safety precautions were not taken,
– pulmonary embolish after surgery,
–surgical instruments left inside the patient,
–nasty bed sores because a patient wasn’t properly attended to or treated,
–infections, etc.

Although I am not surprised to see these things on the Never list, it makes me wonder why the Dr’s, Hospitals, their insurance companies and defense lawyers, fought me tooth and nail for year after year attempting to claim each and every one of these things could happen even though no one screwed up. Hmmm, I wonder….. I always thought that was a crock of bull and now it’s nice to have Medicare agree and stiff them on their bills.

Thanks for reading,

Jim Reed
NY Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Elmira, NY
jreed@zifflaw.com

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