Recalls of generic Zantac believed to be contaminated by a carcinogen continue to flood in. Two other firms have declared recalls of ranitidine heartburn meds in 150 mg and 300 mg doses. The news arrived even as the degree of the drug returns increased with Mylan’s impromptu recall of three lots of nizatidine capsules last week because the API in them also held dangerous levels of NDMA.
Shortly after the Federal officials announced the voluntary recalls of some pharmacies over NDMA, a drug filled with a potential human carcinogen, many other pharmacies have recalled the common variety of heartburn drug Zantac, called ranitidine, from shelves.
Additional generic editions of Zantac are being taken down from pharmacy shelves after officials detected low levels of a possible carcinogens in the heartburn medication.
The Stryker Tritanium Acetabular Shell, which restores the human hip socket, is built from a titanium alloy covered with a unique kind of porous foam. The foam enables bone cells to bind with it and grow, thereby increasing joint stability. However, a 2018 report in the journal Arthroplasty Today by doctors at NYU Langone Orthopedic Hospitals described five hip implant failures related to Stryker’s Tritanium cups between 2011 and 2016.
The United States of America Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently decided that lawsuits documented under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act (Vaccine Act) can be determined exclusively on the written record. The procedural ruling enables lawsuits to be ruled on without executing evidentiary hearings or acquiring any of the parties’ consent.
The National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program was launched in 1988. It’s a no-fault system established through federal law and it offers a forum for claims of harm from vaccines. The program currently covers claims arising from 15 childhood vaccines as well as the seasonal flu shot. Over the past 30 years, the program has awarded claims to almost 7000 people harmed by vaccines.
The National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program was launched in 1988. It’s a no-fault system established through federal law and it offers a forum for claims of harm from vaccines. The program currently covers claims arising from 15 childhood vaccines as well as the seasonal flu shot. Over the past 30 years, the program has awarded claims to almost 7000 people harmed by vaccines.
After experiencing a shoulder injury from a vaccine, individuals can be left with feelings of confusion, frustration, and helplessness. Many individuals decide to take no legal recourse because they do not want to sue their pharmacist or family doctor that administered the vaccine. Others do not want to go through a legal process altogether for fear of the court system. Others simply do not know where to turn after experiencing a shoulder injury related to a vaccine.
Recent articles and reports about the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program have given anti-vax supports a new thread to pull on. Their belief is that, if vaccines do not cause harm, then why is there a governmental program designed to compensate vaccine injuries? In addition, if vaccine injuries are rare, how has the government paid out over $4 billion to vaccine injured victims?
On June 18, 2019, Pam Belluck and Reed Abelson from the New York Times published an article addressing the question of whether the existence of the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program signaled that vaccines are unsafe. The authors begin their article by noting that over 6,600 claims have been compensated in the Vaccine Program since its inception, and the correlating payouts have totaled over $4 billion.
Measles outbreaks have occurred in 22 states and as a result, adults are wondering if they are immune to the measles virus, or whether they should get a measles booster vaccine. The alarming number of outbreaks, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has blamed as a deliberate misinformation campaign by anti-vaccine activists, has many Americans questioning they efficacy of the MMR vaccines they have previously received.
Although May is late in the 2018-2019 flu season, flu activity in Delaware and across the U.S. remains elevated with an increase in the number of influenza A (H3N2) viruses circulating over the last month. H3N2 viruses are typically associated with more severe illness in older adults. While anyone experiencing flu-like symptoms should seek treatment quickly, it is especially important for individuals 65 years and older to do so due to the number of health complications that the influenza virus can cause.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines for vaccinating employees who respond to medical incidents in the workplace are mandatory requirements under OSHA regulations, the Eighth Circuit has recently ruled. The Circuit Court was tasked with whether Walmart was required to administer Hepatitis B vaccines to its employees who rendered first aid in the workplace.
At nearby Temple University, over 100 confirmed cases of mumps have been confirmed as an outbreak hit the university hard after just a few documented cases in February 2019. Across the United States, it’s not just the mumps that have seen outbreaks. The number of measles cases in the US jumped to the second-highest level in 25 years.
According to a new research brief released in March 2019 by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4), the number of influenza hospitalizations in Pennsylvania increased from 5,328 in fiscal year 2017 to 8,647 in fiscal year 2018. This 62% increase shows substantial variation in the number of hospital admissions for influenza, a pattern that is similar to national trends.
Guillain-Barré syndrome is the most common and most severe acute paralytic neuropathy, with about 100,000 people developing the disorder every year worldwide. GBS can be preceded by infections, by viral and bacterial, or by vaccination. While somewhat uncommon, cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome have been linked to recent influenza vaccines.
In order to handle vaccine cases, an attorney must be admitted to the United States Court of Federal Claims and licensed in the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. Licensed vaccine attorneys must possess the vast knowledge and intricacies of the vaccine court, the applicable law, the medicine and the science. Not every personal injury attorney has this specialized knowledge. In fact, there are very few vaccine attorneys nationwide.
Vaccines are a critical part of our society and are extremely necessary in preventing diseases that were eliminated decades ago. They are also helpful in curbing outbreaks. Measles, polio, and chicken pox are just some of the diseases that have largely been eliminated due to vaccines. Influenza on the other hand is common place in our culture, but the flu shot helps minimize the impact and limits any nationwide outbreaks.
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