LegalMatch: Personal Injury

The New Death Sticks: E-Cigarettes

2009-11-04T13:58:15-08:00

It seems that everywhere you look these days; people are coming up with more creative ways to get their highs. From Volcano vaporizers to light cigarettes, getting your nicotine buzz has become the technological grail. One of the newest is the electronic cigarette, or e-cigarette. But what exactly is this thing?

The e-cigarette looks like a cigarette, glows at the tip like a cigarette, contains nicotine like a cigarette, and walks, talks and acts like a cigarette… So one has to ask, why isn't it a cigarette?

The easy answer is to say that, unlike a cigarette, the e-cigarette is actually constructed primarily from a stainless-steel tube. To be more precise, when someone "puffs" on an e-cigarette, a computerized sensor feels the drop in pressure and activates both an internal heating element as well as the signature "red glow" LED at the tip. The heating element then vaporizes a liquid solution that contains, among other things, varying levels of nicotine.

As the makers of these things really like to tout upon, these e-cigarettes can be smoked anywhere because they are not technically cigarettes. Thus, although I hate to see it, there are kiosks full of these things popping up in malls everywhere. The employees of these carts are encouraged to "smoke" these e-cigarettes inside of the malls where they work to show the shoppers that it’s okay to smoke inside. Personally, I felt nauseated by the sight and wondered how the mall owners allow such filth.

According to the Food and Drug Administration, e-cigarettes are considered "new drugs," which means that they require approval from the FDA. This means that their safety needs to be backed by scientific data. Although the companies that sell these e-cigarettes claim that they are safe, they have not backed up their claims with any data showing studies on humans. And despite the FDA saying that these products are still waiting on their approval and cannot be sold, stores are popping up like candy, and there has been no movement to stop their sale. This has prompted the FDA to sue for the power to regulate these drug devices. Does this raise a giant red flag for anyone else but me? I mean, if these e-cigarettes are as safe as the companies claim they are, why are they forcing the FDA to sue to get the power to regulate them?

These e-cigarettes also present a new legal issue. In states where cigarette smoking is banned in restaurants, workplaces and within 20 feet of many public places, where exactly is an e-cigarette allowed? The makers of the e-cigarettes claim that they can be smoked anywhere because they are not defined as a cigarette, but as the FDA has found, these devices still deliver chemicals that are quite toxic to humans. In response, some states, like California, are pursuing legislation that would halt the sale of e-cigarettes until the FDA has the power to regulate them.

So, what’s the best bet? Get your toxins the traditional way and light up, or get new and exciting chemicals and light up your LED…

Are You Sharing Your Sheets With Bed Bugs?

2008-06-17T11:50:28-07:00

A friend of mine told me a horrifying story today about a recent bed bug infestation. His friend had picked up a used mattress from Craigslist. Because they were both heading to Oregon the next day, my friend let him leave the bruised-looking futon in his apartment for the duration of their trip. No problem, right?

The morning after returning, my friend woke up with a series of livid red welts all across his arms, legs, and back: the tell-tale “breakfast, lunch, and dinner” bites of the bed bug variety. And they itched like crazy. The mystery mattress had been so infested with the little brown blood-suckers that even sleeping in the same room as the futon had made a meal of him.

It was no surprise that his first call of the day was to an exterminator.

Three Signs That You Might Have Bed Bugs

(1) Itchy red welts on your arms, legs, torso, or face. Bed bugs often leave a series of three bite marks in a row. The bites are usually painless, but can be extremely itchy.

(2) Red or dark brown spots on bedding. Bed bugs inject an anti-coagulant when they bite to keep your blood from clotting, which makes it easier for them to feed. However, this can sometimes also cause you to continue bleeding after the bite—spotting pillows, mattresses, or sheets with your blood. Waste produced by bed bugs also tends to be dark brown or reddish, because it is composed of digested blood.

(3) Bed bugs or cast-offs on mattress seams. These guys love to hide in tiny crevasses, so take a look at the seams of your mattress. You should also lift your mattress and check the bed frame for these little brown bugs.

Hiring a Bed Bug Exterminator

There’s a reason that I’m skipping the “how to get rid of bed bugs” part of this post—they are notoriously difficult to exterminate. While you can wash your sheets, vacuum, spray, and disinfect almost every part of your home, there is a good chance that these little pests will hide in some crevasse or curtain fold and return to feast again. As such, your best recourse is to hire an exterminator.

You should be aware, first of all, that most exterminators are bound by contract liability laws. This means that they are bound to an agreement to exterminate all bed bugs in your residence and (most importantly!) to make sure that they don’t return. If pests return within a year, it is often the result of a less-than-thorough extermination job on the part of the exterminator—and if a third party (like another exterminator) can verify that initial negligence, you can hold up the original exterminator under breach of contract laws.

But make sure to read the contract before you let them throw the big striped tent over your home. You’re only protected from a breach of contract if the exterminator promises to eliminate all pests at the time the contract is signed. Confirm the liability of your exterminator to use safe practices and get the job done, and you’ll probably avoid a miserable reoccurrence of those itchy red bites.

Craning for an Answer to Construction Site Accidents.

2008-05-28T13:18:26-07:00

Construction sites require hardhats for a reason—they’re not the safest places in the world to wander around unarmored. Even the most seasoned construction workers are at risk every time they pick up heavy equipment, wield high-powered tools, or traipse across beams teetering hundreds of feet above ground. Don’t believe me? Run a search in Google News for “construction accidents,” and then count the number of news-worthy results from the last week alone.

It’s because of these types of on-the-job accidents that OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, was put in place over 30 years ago to create safer work environments. And even when it’s not possible to make a location—especially a construction site—100% secure, the state provides for injured workers with worker’s compensation.

Crane Accidents

Because construction sites can be particularly volatile places to work, there are even more specific laws and lawyers in place to address specific injuries, safety violations, and accidents that may occur there. One particularly dangerous category of accidents deals with cranes.

Crane accidents are all over the news, and many of them are unfortunately fatal. Most of the ones I’ve linked involve deaths or injuries due to the crane tipping over, but in reality, this is only the cause of 15% of crane accident deaths. A stunning 40% are actually caused by the crane coming into contact with power lines and electrocuting the crane workers.

If you work on a construction site or oversee construction projects, try to make sure that you and your coworkers are aware of the hazards of this type of work. OSHA has videos available for site supervisors on crane safety, fork lift operation, and many other health and safety issues surrounding construction site work.

If you have sustained an injury while working on a construction site and believe that it was the result of an unsafe work environment or lack of training, you should contact a construction accidents lawyer immediately so that you can ensure your job security and, where applicable, pursue monetary compensation.

Rescinded: Blue Cross Violating Health Insurance Laws?

2008-04-22T11:50:43-07:00

The LA Times reported last week on a major violation of health insurance laws by the huge private health insurer, Blue Cross. (Or, as they’re now called in California, “Anthem Blue Cross”).

The California Blue Cross division is under fire for pre-planning rescissions. As I mentioned a few posts ago, rescissions are the heavy artillery behind insurance cancellation. They allow private insurers to find discrepancies in your original application (an abnormal PAP smear, for example) and swing on that “error” to retroactively deny you coverage. Their claim is that the omitted information would have altered their original decision to approve you for a plan, and in some cases that's a valid claim. But Anthem Blue Cross has apparently been taking this process a little too far—by planning their rescissions in advance, and acting against health insurance laws.

Rocky Degadillo, an attorney for the city of Los Angeles, even went so far as to say that “countless Californians who believe they have insurance actually have policies that aren't worth the paper they're printed on” [1]. Not exactly a reassuring sentiment for policy-holders who have already dished out thousands in monthly payments.

Those with individual insurance, such as many self-employed or unemployed citizens, are being hit the hardest.

While the HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) makes it easier for people with pre-existing health conditions to get insurance through work, health protection for individuals remains subject to cancellations via rescission, outright denials for pre-existing conditions, and exorbitant premiums and monthly charges.

What can I do if my health insurance plan has been rescinded?

If your policy was rescinded and you believe that it was done so unfairly, you may still be able to get coverage. If you are in California, you should be also aware that past rescissions by Blue Cross are currently being reconsidered, which means that you could get retroactive reimbursement for surgeries, procedures, and other work done if you were uninsured because of a canceled policy.

Get in contact with a personal injury attorney and explain your situation.

A few minutes of discussion can give you a professional look at your options and allow you to make an educated approach to getting your health insurance back and your debt repaid.

You can also discuss your policy or issues with your health insurance on our Personal Injury and Accident Law Forum.

by Kate Beall

"Slip and Fall" Fakers and Fraud Artists.

2008-04-11T16:33:29-07:00

Faced with an episode of “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” someone unfamiliar with the States would probably conclude that we are a nation obsessed with infants, humorless voiceover, and serious personal injury. But intentional personal injury—that’s a strange one.

Yet we see this kind of damage (or people faking it) all the time. We’re extremely familiar with the car-accident “victim” and his convenient case of whiplash, and we laugh about the shady stranger faking a dog bite wound. But these aren’t just popular images from a syndicated sitcom. Occasionally, the insurance fraud artist becomes a feature in the very real, very modern news.

This “slip and fall” faker made the news last year after security cameras caught her pouring olive oil on a store’s tile floor. Returning later to “slip” on the pre-planned slick, the Florida woman made her cunning plan a little too obvious, and the store owner’s his $30,000 surveillance system caught the entire fraud on film. Unluckily for that woman, the film caught the internet by storm too.

Despite the glut of popular images about fake victims and insurance fraud criminals, dangerous property and building laws were put in place for a good reason: to protect. For property owners who don’t conform to the safety rules, the consequences can be serious. In this recent Texas case, over $75,000 is at stake because of a puddle of wax on a WalMart floor. Even a New York inmate is taking a stab at the pie with her case against the prison system, claiming that a “slip and fall” injury resulted from her shower-cleaning duties.

With so many cases to thumb through, how can we tell which ones are legit?

The legal system generally uses three criteria to determine whether a property owner is at fault:

The property owner caused the spill, worn or torn spot, or other slippery or dangerous surface or item;
The property owner knew of the dangerous condition but did nothing about it; or
The property owner should have known of the dangerous surface because a "reasonable" person taking care of the property would have discovered and removed or repaired it.

So, owners—keep your property in good repair, keep your customers safe, read up on personal injury laws, AND—

…consider installing a surveillance system.

by Kate Beall