California Injury Attorney Blog

The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission cautions the American public gearing up for July 4th celebrations and has issued a warning about sparklers, bottle rockets and small firecrackers. These small celebratory fireworks can be deceiving in that their size leads us to believe these are harmless. As California injury attorneys, we want you to know that they are not harmless.

In 2010, nearly 2,000 consumers visited emergency rooms due to injuries from these small fireworks in the 30-day period prior to the holiday. And over 8,500 were injured and visited hospital emergency rooms during that year due to both legal and illegal fireworks.

Overall, there were 6,300 reports of injuries from fireworks and the hands, face and head were most likely to be harmed. Many of these injuries involved small fireworks such as firecrackers, bottle rockets, and sparklers. Even more worrisome is the fact that fireworks injury statistics show that often victims are under the age of 15 in 40 percent of the incidents.

The CPSC says that it is very important that you and your family know which fireworks are legal in your state. In addition, do not assume that a small firecracker is safer because of its size. It isn't. The seriousness of this warning cannot be overemphasized: the CSPC experts say that parents need to know the dangers of these devices and do not allow children to light or to play with them.

If you would like to see the live demonstrations on the dangers of fireworks, click here. They are a sobering reminder of the dangers of these devices.

The CPSC held a demonstration on the National Mall last week to demonstrate its commitment to stopping the manufacture and sale of illegal fireworks. The CPSC is collaborating with many other federal agencies to enforce "fireworks regulations, prosecute manufacturers and distributors of illegal fireworks, and educate the public about the risks associated with such fireworks."

Please check with your local California law enforcement agency regarding their regulations with regard to the timing and use of fireworks. Many areas are publicizing information on the legal use of fireworks so that the public can be forewarned as the police activity and law enforcement's intentions with regard to July 4th celebrations.

The following safety tips are recommended to help avoid serious injury:

1. Do not allow young kids to light or play with fireworks

2. Do not purchase fireworks packaged in brown paper as this is the way these devices are packaged for professional use and you could be buying something dangerous.

3. Do not leave children unattended, even with sparklers, which burn at very high temperatures.

4. Do not allow your body to be directly over a fireworks device when lighting it and back up immediately after it is lit.

5. Do not re-light a device that did not fully ignite.

6. Do not point or toss a device at another person.

7. Always have water or a hose on hand.

8. Do not carry fireworks devices in your pocket or in a metal or glass container.

9. Make sure fireworks are legal in your area before buying or using them.

As California consumer attorneys, we seek to inform the public on the safety of devices and products. Please contact our law firm if you have been injured by a product or device or have otherwise been injured in an accident. We provide free law consultations with an experienced lawyer who will evaluate your case or situation.

A decade after recommendations were made for truck and bus safety, the conversation continues. As California injury attorneys, we are pleased that, at the very least, safety is being discussed.

The national forum on truck and bus crashes and safety began earlier this week in Washington, D.C. The two-day forum which convened at the National Transportation Safety Board goes through today. Live webcasts and other information can be found at the NTSB website.

The NTSB has been raising the level of awareness in the areas of truck and bus accident safety and the forum is intended to bring together industry experts including safety, regulatory and the trucking and busing industry to talk about the continued dangers of transportation. Long-standing recommendations have yet to be enacted or implemented.

The Associated Press report on the forum, reminds us of one of the major safety issues being discussed during the forum -- the terrible consequences of truck driver fatigue. For example, some remember the 2009 accident in Oklahoma in which a truck failed to stop to avoid a fender bender in its path. Although there was plenty of time and space for the truck to avoid the cars in front of it, the truck drove through the sitting traffic. Ten people were killed as the truck rode over passenger cars dragging them until it stopped. The investigation revealed that the truck driver had slept only about five hours the night before the accident and had been driving for nearly 10 hours.

The forum is looking at fatigue as a big factor in these crashes, roughly 40 percent are due to fatigue. The Obama administration is seeking to ensure measures like mandatory rest breaks, reduction of hours behind the wheel and other rules are put in place to manage driver fatigue.

Although truck fatalities have improved in the past few years, dropping from 2005 to 2009 by about 2,000, there are still too many such tragic incidents.

Similarly, bus fatalities have continued with recent fatal crashes, including one this past March in New York involving a casino trip to Connecticut in which 15 people were killed and 18 injured. Many injuries in bus crashes involve ejection of passengers from the vehicles.

Bus safety improvements are part of this conversation. For years, the NTSB has had a recommendation that buses have similar safety measures as cars, such as seat belts, stronger bus roofs, windows that open and other basic measures that could save lives in a bus accident.

Hersh & Hersh has represented the victims of serious car and truck accidents for many decades. We applaud the conversation about safety, but would hope that recommendations are implemented that would help save lives.

If you or a family member has been injured in a motor vehicle accident, please contact our San Francisco office for a free consultation with one of our lawyers. We represent accident victims throughout California and can help support you and your family through this most challenging time in your lives.

As San Francisco personal injury lawyers, we are all too aware of the dangers of driving since we represent those who have been involved in serious accidents and have suffered often traumatic injuries.

And even though California law prohibits drivers from holding a cell phone or texting while driving, there are many other distractions that can result in a serious accident. If you thought it was just cell phones, you are wrong.

Recently, the New York Times reported on the other areas of distraction that many drivers engage in daily that carry the same risk as driving while under the influence. These include opening a bag of chips or nuts, programming a GPS, getting something off the car floor your child dropped, searching for a CD or putting on makeup.

According to the experts, none of these activities is safe since cognition is compromised and all are just as big a problem as holding a cell phone or texting while driving. As noted by the NYT piece, experts say that: " '[d]riving while distracted is roughly equivalent to driving drunk.' "

Sobering isn't it? So much so that the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the Orthopaedic Trauma Association, have started a "Decide to Drive" campaign. Its amazing that we even need such a thing, but since Americans seem to think that they should multi-task while driving, this campaign seeks to educate drivers of the dangers of doing so while driving.

The numbers are truly staggering. The National Safety Council has stated that just this year so far there are over 300,000 accidents related to distracted driving.

The thing to do, according to the experts, is to get everything you can organized before starting the car or pull over if you need to attend to something other than driving. The long term consequences of doing otherwise are just not worth the potential for tragedy.

Hersh & Hersh represents the victims of serious injury, including that caused by car accidents or other motor vehicle accidents. If you or a loved one have been injured in an accident, please contact us for a free consultation with one of our experienced trial attorneys.

The Los Angeles Times reports that several important steps are being taken to protect pedestrians as they browse the Santa Monica Farmers Market. The system of protections will include signs, barricades and nets that are able to stop vehicles.

The planning for all of this started several years ago. It was prompted after 10 people were tragically killed as an elderly driver went off the road and crashed into pedestrians at the Farmer's Market. Santa Monica and additional defendants paid $21 million in damages for the loss of life and other injuries. As injury lawyers, we know the shock and sorrow that families experience in tragic accidents.

The nets are reported to be relatively safe for those in the car or other vehicle, but are capable of stopping even a very heavy vehicle. They are similar to tennis court nets, and are strung with cables on the top and the bottom of the net.

As can happen with elderly drivers, the man who was driving at the time of the tragic loss of life, hit the accelerator thinking it was the brake. He was sentenced to five years probation after his conviction in 2007 of ten counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence.

After the elderly driver car accident, various entities concluded that not only were the signs inadequate, but there was no hard barrier system to keep traffic out of the market.
Other cities have used the nets to keep traffic out of areas such as construction zones.

Continue reading "Protecting Pedestrians Against Injury" »

The tragic bus accident that killed 15 passengers earlier this year in New York, is a sad ending to the many lives lost. Now it has been determined that the bus was traveling 78 miles per hour when it crashed and flipped. The wrongful death and injury lawyers of the California Injury Attorney Blog know that this indicates the accident could have been avoided.

This news was delivered last month by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) which found that the bus was traveling at the highest rate of speed possible for the vehicle only 45 seconds prior to its departure from I-95. At the time of the crash, the bus was traveling between the Bronx and a casino in eastern Connecticut.

In addition to the work of the NTSB in putting together the pieces of this tragedy, the New York State Police are involved in the investigation and have been interviewing witnesses and conducting studies of the crash. The purpose of the investigation is to determine whether the bus driver will be charged criminally.

The bus driver's account of the accident included a claim that he was trying to avoid hitting a tractor-trailor that had passed him and veered towards the bus. And now it has been revealed that he had served time in prison for manslaughter and larceny convictions -- his license has been suspended.

In fact there is no evidence that the accident happened the way the driver described it. Another truck driver came forward as a witness and has said that the tractor-trailer that is alleged to have swerved towards the bus, did not do so.

The investigation has revealed that the bus reached its fastest speed of 78 miles per hour in the 45 seconds before the crash. The speed limit was 55 miles per hour.

There is some thought that the driver may have fallen asleep at the wheel of the bus according to some of the surviving passengers.

Continue reading "Fatal Bus Crash -- Speed Possible Factor " »

The Sacramento Bee reported recently that an effort is underway in California to pass a consumer-related bill that would protect consumers from renting or buying a car from a rental car company that is subject to a federal safety recall.

California Assembly Bill 753 is supported by the mother of a young woman and her sister who were both killed in a tragic crash in Monterey County in 2005.

Carol Houck's daughters were killed in a head-on collision on Highway 101 when they were driving a rented Chrysler PT Cruiser that had been subject to a safety recall. Ms. Houck has been dedicated to getting legislation passed to protect drivers from what happened to her children.

The bill's author is Democratic Assemblyman Bill Monning of Carmel who is pushing for the legislation to ensure that all rental car companies are required to protect consumers from recalled cars that have not been repaired. Some companies have voluntarily decided to do this, but that is not enough according to Monning and Ms. Houck who is also involved with Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety (CARS), which is pushing for the bill's passage.

The deceased sisters' family was awarded $15 million in a wrongful death case filed against the rental car company and its holding company that rented them the recalled vehicle. The vehicle in which the young women were killed, had been rented repeatedly, despite the federal recall for a potentially dangerous leak in the steering wheel hosing which was never repaired. The rental car company eventually admitted negligence.

Some rental car companies have changed their policies regarding recalled cars, but others say the legislation should be narrowed to include only recalled cars for major safety issues.

What is the National Highway Safety Commission's position on this issue? "All safety recalls resulting from defects present an unreasonable risk to safety." The California Injury Attorney Blog agrees.

The San Francisco law firm of Hersh & Hersh has a long history of improving the health and safety of the consuming public. We support legislative efforts that protect consumers and we have a long and stellar history of creating those protections for victims of injury.

If you have any questions about our representation of victims and their families in personal injury and auto accident cases, contact our California office to speak directly with one of our attorneys.

Recently, a man drowned in southern California during a scuba-diving class off the coast near Catalina Island. According to Los Angeles authorities, the drowning victim was taking a beginning scuba course when he apparently became unconscious. The victim was rushed to the University of California Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber by a lifeguard boat, but the emergency medical treatment was not successful and he was pronounced dead there.

We currently do not know more facts about this incident. However, it is important to be reminded that when we go outdoors to do fun activities, we also need to be prepared for those activities. When taking a class or a tour, pay attention to the qualifications of those involved.

An example of recreational activity that turned harmful is a recent incident on a Segway tour in northern California. The California Injury Attorney Blog's affiliated San Francisco injury law firm recently settled a case of serious injury that took place during a Segway tour at a Bay Area recreational area.

In that case, a series of things occurred that caused serious injury. First, the injured woman was not properly trained on the Segway prior to the tour and her tour guide was not present when she was trained and was not aware of her level of comfort in operating the segway. Second, the tour operators failed to properly monitor the tour that the woman was on when she crashed and was very badly hurt. Third, the tour guide himself was inexperienced. He had even asked to be excused from guiding the very tour he was guiding at the time the woman was injured, but his manager required him to go out anyway. He did not want to supervise another tour because he had led a tour earlier that day in which a participant was injured.

The woman suffered a severe leg injury when she was unable to stop her Segway and fell over it. She has had two surgeries and now has difficulty with mobility and cannot do things she used to enjoy doing.

In the case of the scuba diver's death we do not know whether the scuba instructor involved in the Catalina Island case was experienced or why the man died doing an activity that many would enjoy learning and is done safely every day. The authorities are not releasing more information.

Before you decide to enjoy a new activity or go on a tour, make sure you feel comfortable with the instructors or guides. If you do not believe you have had enough instruction, or if you do not know the credentials of your instructor or the tour operator, go elsewhere or do a different activity.

If you are hurt or injured get help from experts who can ensure that you have the support you need to recover from your injuries. The San Francisco, California injury law firm of Hersh & Hersh has helped injured victims of catastrophic injury for decades and offers free confidential consultations with an attorney. Contact our law firm to talk with one of our experienced injury attorneys.

The snowy slopes of the Tahoe area are a big draw this time of year. Many skiers and snowboarders have had a great winter in the ski resorts this season.

Tragically, for one University of California, Santa Cruz senior, what should have been a wonderful ski weekend ended in her death while she was snowboarding. Although the autopsy is not complete, the cause of her death appears to have been blunt force trauma after she crashed backward into a ski lift tower.

The local authorities believe the woman, a 22-year old theater student, crashed into a tower pole at a ski resort. She may have not seen the pole as she was apparently turned backwards facing uphill, rather than facing downhill, while sitting on her snowboard and using it like a sled. She also may not have been wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.

In considering this tragic end to a young life, the California Injury Attorney Blog reminds its readers to ski and snowboard safely. Go over the safety rules for yourself and with your children before you get on the slopes and remember to wear a helmet to help avoid injury.

The San Francisco law firm of Hersh & Hersh represents the injured and their loved ones when tragedy strikes. Please contact us to speak with one of our lawyers for a free consultation.

Yesterday, the Chicago Tribune published a major report on the dangers of crib bumpers. The California Injury Attorney Blog's affiliated law firm, Hersh & Hersh represents one of the families featured in the article. We want to ensure that other families protect their children from these dangers.

Preston Maxwell died at age seven weeks. His dad put him to bed one night earlier this year and by morning the baby was found dead in his crib. The baby was found with his nose "pressed between the mattress and crib bumper pad" and his autopsy report concluded that he had suffocated. In other words, the baby's face ended up wedged between the mattress and crib bumper pad.

According to the Tribune article, the "U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said it will re-examine the safety of crib bumpers." This will include reopening files on infant deaths to evaluate the "safety of bumper pads on store shelves and rethinking how investigators examine deaths where bumper pads are present."

It is not yet known how many infant deaths have been caused by crib bumpers, but since the CPSC is now taking another look at this product, there might well be many more deaths that will in the end be attributed to something that has been present in baby nurseries for years.

One pediatrician studied the safety of bumper pads and three years ago issued a report that concluded 27 infant deaths were caused by these products over two decades. He used CPSC data to determine this.

In some cases, the deaths have been erroneously attributed to SIDS, when in fact other circumstances in these baby's cribs were overlooked. Due to the pediatrician's report, the American Academy of Pediatrics suggested that parents avoid the use of crib bumpers.

Another product in many infant cribs are sleep positioners. These are supposed to keep infants from rolling onto their stomach which is suspected as a cause of SIDS. In Preston's case, he was placed in a crib positioner, but "rolled out of his positioner and landed with his face between the bumper pad and mattress," states the Tribute article.

This past fall, the FDA urged parents to stop using these positioners and issued a warning concerning them. Additionally, the FDA sought the halting of manufacturing and selling of this product.

The national consumer lawyers of California's Hersh & Hersh would like parents to ensure their infants are safe. If you would like more information on the dangers of crib bumper and/or baby positioners, please contact our law firm to speak with one of our lawyers.

Earlier this month, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Administrator David Strickland announced a new and improved "5-Star Safety Ratings System for new vehicles and released the safety ratings for the first model year 2011 vehicles tested under the program."

Some of the key improvements to the ratings system include such specifics as side pole crash testing and crash prevention-technologies.

Safety has no gender and another area of change is that, yes, for the very first time the new system will use female crash test dummies to simulate crashes. Prior to this, male crash test dummies were used exclusively.

Secretary LaHood said that the new system is "raising the bar on safety." He continued by saying that the "new tests, better crash data, and higher standards" will toughen-up the safety ratings and provide more meaningful information for consumers.

The new ratings cover three big areas of concern: frontal crash, side crash, and rollover resistance. Several specifics will be helpful for consumers in determining safety, including electronic stability control, lane departure warning, and forward collision warning systems. There will also be an Overall Vehicle Score for every car tested.

The California Injury Attorney Blog supports any and all efforts to provide consumers meaningful data on safety to avoid accidents.

The San Francisco law firm of Hersh & Hersh has a long history of improving the health and safety of the consuming public. We are pleased that the new safety ratings criteria have been put in place to help consumers identify potentially safer vehicles. If you have any questions about our representation of victims and their families in personal injury and auto accident cases, contact our California office to speak directly with one of our attorneys.

Yesterday Fisher-Price recalled an unprecedented 10 million products that it sold in the United States. The United States Consumer Safety Commission has posted a list of products with pictures for consumers to carefully check their children's toy collections and contact Fisher-Price for repair kits.

Please check the CPSC website link above and then check your children's toys. Above all, stop using these toys until you have determined they have been repaired and the dangers corrected.

TRIKES
Among the recalled toys are 14 toddler tricycles seen on patios and sidewalks around the country. These can cause serious injury due to a plastic ignition key that is positioned in front of the child seat. Injury has been caused when children sit or fall against this "pretend" key. These tricycles are Trike and Tough Trike models.

INFANT ACTIVITY CENTERS
Another major area of the recall is an infant activity center that has inflatable balls included. The problem with these activity centers is the inflatable ball valve. The valve has come off and has been found in 14 infant's mouths, with three reports of infants starting to choke on these valves. According to the CPSC, 46 valves have been reported to have come off.

HIGH CHAIRS
Nearly 950,000 high chairs have been recalled due to a danger involved with children falling against the back legs of the chair and being injured on pegs located there. Seven injuries have been reported thus far.

LITTLE PEOPLE VEHICLES
Another area of the recall is a toy called Little People vehicles. The wheels have detached from this toy. The Fisher-Price Little People Wheelies Stand 'n Play Rampway poses a choking hazard to young children.

TAKE ACTION
The California Injury Attorney Blog and the lawyers at Hersh & Hersh have been involved in protecting the public from dangerous products, including the largest crib recall in the history of the United States. We have represented the families of children who have been injured or have died while using a dangerous product.

If you believe your child has been injured by a defective toy or product, please contact the California personal injury lawyers at Hersh & Hersh to talk with one of our lawyers at no charge to you. For more information on matters handled by the firm, please visit our website.

If your child has been injured by one of these recalled products contact Fisher-Price and the CPSC. The agency credits concerned parents, who reported injuries and problems with these toys, with the information needed to help with this recall.

And remember, if you have purchased one of these toys in a store, garage sale or have been given a "hand-me-down" from a family member or friend, carefully check these recalled products to ensure your child is not using a recalled product or toy.

The California Injury Attorney Blog tracks national drug and product recalls. Most recently, the nation has been under a massive recall of shell eggs. This is a significant food safety issue and we want our readers to take precautions to avoid illness.

The recent recalls became necessary after hundreds of consumers across the country became ill with Salmonella Enteritidis (SE). This illness can be serious and is a common cause of food poisoning.

Millions of shell eggs have now been recalled from store shelves. The FDA also has extensive questions and answers on its website to help consumers avoid becoming ill from these eggs.

The recall involves Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms, Inc. both of which are the subject of ongoing investigations that include environmental sampling at company facilities. The sampling indicates that these facilities are the source of the contaminated shell eggs. More specifically, the bacteria may have originated at the feed mill for these facilities, which is located several miles away.

There are many brand names involved in this recall because the eggs are packaged and distributed by many companies around the country. About 500 million eggs are now involved in the recall. A list of the brands involved can be viewed here.

The FDA says that it is continuing its investigation of the sources of the contamination. That includes assessments of farm conditions, including environmental sampling. Other important areas are being reviewed such as sanitation, security and the like.
Investigators are also looking at whether these facilities share common practices and sources that could lead to such a large contamination.

This is the largest national Salmonella outbreak since records on such outbreaks started in 1970. The largest prior outbreak was in 1994 and involved ice cream.

The FDA continues to issue inspection reports for some of the companies that have been subject to the recall. If you would like to read these reports, click here and here.

The consumer attorneys at San Francisco's Hersh & Hersh have many years of experience in protecting the public against dangerous and defective products, medical devices and pharmaceuticals. If you have any questions about consumer safety, please contact us for a free consultation with one our lawyers.

The California Injury Attorney Blog wants you to know about the risks and complications associated with surgical mesh. This is used to treat such conditions as Pelvic Organ Prolapse or POP and Stress Urinary Incontinence or SUI.

Surgical mesh is often used to repair these conditions and is placed transvaginally, sometimes with the use of surgical tools that are considered minimally invasive. There are a number of vaginal mesh manufacturers and many of them have reported complications to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The complications associated with this procedure can be very serious. The complications that have been most often reported include: infection, pain, vaginal epithelium erosion, urinary problems, and the return of the very conditions for which the procedure was performed in the first place. Additional complications include perforations that occur during the procedure of the bladder, bowels and blood vessels.

All of the complications associated with the use of transvaginal surgical mesh can bring pain and discomfort to patients, as well as a major reduction in quality of life. Sometimes, the treatment for these problems includes the removal of the mesh. Other treatments include those for infection and other conditions caused by the procedure or subsequent problems arising after the procedure.

If you, or a loved one, has had a surgical mesh procedure and has experienced pain, discomfort or the POP or SUI has not improved, you may need additional treatment.

To learn more about your legal rights with regard to this procedure, please contact the California personal injury law firm of Hersh & Hersh to talk with a lawyer about your situation.

Earlier this month Pottery Barn Kids issued a voluntary recall for repair of its drop-side cribs. There are about 82,000 of these in the marketplace.

The hazard involves entrapment, which can lead to suffocation and the possibility of a fall. The cribs' drop-sides can detach when hardware breaks. Pottery Barn Kids wants consumers to stop using these cribs and to contact the company to receive a free kit intended to correct the problem.

The Pottery Barn Kids crib recall underscores the larger issues with crib safety, which are currently being addressed by the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The CPSC has recently proposed new testing rules for full-size and smaller cribs. The purpose of the new standards is to deal with the serious and sometimes tragic consequences of defective and poorly designed infant cribs.

The California Injury Attorney Blog has posted on the dangers of defective cribs and bassinettes. Moreover, Hersh & Hersh has been involved with some of the most important crib and bassinette recalls in United States history. We have represented families that have suffered tragic losses due to these defective products.

Over the past several years, we have seen defects that include dangers due to defective design and hardware, detachment of side rails and other defects that have resulted in entrapment and suffocation deaths or falls.

The mandated improvements are based on The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA). This Act required mandatory safety standards for infant and toddler products.

The recent rules are the subject of a notice of proposed rulemaking. The specific details of the proposed modifications can be found here. Briefly, summarized, the essential modifications require specific crib testing such as mattress support, side impact and stress tests in which screws would not be tightened to replicate long term use.
According to the CPSC, its staff expects to finalize the proposed mandatory crib standards in 2010.

Web Resources

The public can report a dangerous product or a product-related injury to the CPSC Hotline at (800) 638-2772. Visit CPSC's web site at www.cpsc.gov.

Important Contact Information

If you believe your child has been injured by a defective product, please contact the California personal injury and trial lawyers at Hersh & Hersh. We will provide a free consultation for you.

The California Injury Attorney Blog has kept our readers posted on the heart-related dangers associated with the diabetes drug, Avandia. Last week, after months of anticipation, the FDA advisory panel convened to provide its conclusions on the RECORD study, funded by the drug's manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline. The panel's recommendations move on to the FDA.

The public has needed clarity on this for some time now, but they did not get it from the advisory panel's recommendation to the FDA. Although the Advisory Panel did not pull the drug from the market, the debate was heated and the vote interesting as 17 members voted to keep the drug on the market but want new restrictions, three said nothing needs to be added to the warnings, and 12 sought a recall of the drug from the market.

Avandia's competing drug Actos does not appear to have the same level of cardiovascular risk associated with it. At least that is what the scientific community is saying at the moment.

The New York Times has reported that the drug's manufacturer has spent a great deal of effort over the past decade pushing back the safety issues with regard to Avandia. One recent editorial in the courier-journal.com, calls this "intolerable' and also calls for the FDA to "represent and demand transparency."

So after three years of consistent erosion to the safety data on this drug, doctors can still prescribe it and diabetes patients can still use it. And, some of those patients will suffer injury because they are taking the drug.

The panel's call for additional label warnings is not much help to the public in deciding how to deal with diabetes treatment. Cleveland Clinic's Chief Cardiologist says the additional warnings will eliminate "95%" of the drug's use, but in the end it is up to the FDA to decide whether to adopt the panel's recommendation and until then, the medical community and diabetes patients and their families must carefully weigh the documented risks in taking this medication.

For more information on Avandia and its risks, please visit hershlaw.com. If you are a diabetes patient and have suffered a cardiac event while taking Avandia, please contact Hersh & Hersh to speak directly with a lawyer about your situation. We will provide a free evaluation of your rights to recover for your injuries.