Not a crutch

It’s never pleasant when medical equipment fails, but if the failure directly affects your livelihood, it just adds insult to injury (no pun intended). That’s what happened to professional football player Jason Peters of the Philadelphia Eagles. Peters tore his Achilles tendon during training in the spring. He underwent surgery to repair it in early… read more

Duck and cover

You’ve all probably seen those “duck tours” in various cities that give tours on those large amphibious vehicles that look like boats on wheels. The tourists sit high up off the ground while the tour guide drives and provides commentary. They might sound like fun, but a number of these tour vehicles have been in… read more

Fraud in a coal mine

When is $3 million not enough? When it’s fraud. Families of miners killed in an explosion in West Virginia in 2010 filed a lawsuit against the mining company, claiming they were fraudulently coerced into accepting wrongful-death settlements. The suit claims that Massey Energy deliberately withheld information pertinent to making settlement decisions. In April 2010 29… read more

One pill doesn’t cure all

The makers of an epilepsy drug that was later marketed as a treatment for schizophrenia as well as dementia-related agitation must pay $1.5 billion to settle a mass of lawsuits. The claims allege that Abbott Laboratories, producers of Depakote, pushed for sales of the drug to treat schizophrenia and dementia-related agitation, even though the drug… read more