Category Archives: Recalls

Up to 200 People Possibly Exposed to Salmonella by Eating at the Firefly

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FireflyAs residents in the Las Vegas area, it is often a nice break from their routine to go out to dinner with friends and family.  What happens when the restaurant does not take the proper steps to ensure the health and well-being of their patrons?  This unfortunate event transpired at the popular Firefly Restaurant on Paradise Road between April 21-26, 2013.  The peak dates when the most people were affected by salmonella poisoning seems to be April 22-23, 2013.  The inspection by Nevada Health officials revealed this outbreak very likely could have been the result of food being stored at improper temperatures and employees handling food without gloves.  The report for the outbreak can be found here:  SNHD May 10 Report (B0175457)

Many victims have gone to the hospital and sought treatment for salmonella bacteria infection they contracted as a result of eating at Firefly Restaurant.  These individuals may not even realize they contracted the bacteria from eating at Firefly.

Our consultation is free, Edward M. Bernstein and Associates have experience representing the victims of outbreaks of tainted food. We will help you fight to get the compensation you deserve. Serious illness demands serious action.

If you recently have been dealing with salmonella and visited Firefly Restaurant on Paradise Road, call the offices of Edward M Bernstein and Associates to see if you have a case.  It is even more critical to call if your sickness started between April 21-26, 2013.

Common Signs you may have had exposure to salmonella:

  • Diarrhea / Loose Stools
  • Vomiting
  • Confirmed Case from Lab Stool Test

Please call Edward M. Bernstein and Associates if you or someone you care about, are the victim of food poisoning after eating at Firefly Restaurant . You want Edward M Bernstein and Associates on your side.  Give us a call today!

Can We Learn From the Tragedy of Others? — Child Car Seats

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Do not use this style of seat for a child under 40 pounds

In the news recently was the tragedy that affected a local family.  A child was riding in her father’s vehicle at the intersection of Eastern Ave and Pebble Rd.  Her father was critically injured in the accident.  We are not yet certain of all the details of this particular accident, but we do know the child was in a booster seat and not in a car seat with a built in harness.

One of the unfortunate problems in accidents like this, is there are people who are using safety equipment they falsely believe will help them in the time of greatest need.  The consequences of using the wrong equipment can be life or death.   Authorities acknowledge in this particular case, it may not have changed the outcome, but for many families it would, so knowledge is the key.

In the midst of tragedy, what can we do? 

Obviously, keeping this family in your thoughts and prayers is a good place to start.  However, if you have children, it may be an opportunity to evaluate your own car seat situation and see if improvements can be made for the safety of your child.

Experts on car seat safety say a child who is under 40 pounds should never be placed in a booster seat as the safest option.  For small children, a better option is using a car seat with built in harnesses.  Most consumers are not taught the difference between what is legal and what is safe; so they make an invalid assumption that if a seat is legal it must be a safe option for a child.  There is little room for error when it comes to a collision, so having the best safety option is paramount to secure your child’s well being.

If you need an in-depth set of guidelines to help keep your family safe in an accident, the American Society of Pediatrics has web page giving their recommendations that can be found here.

As always, if you have been in an accident or injured, please call the office of Ed Bernstein to discuss the details of your case. 

Ed Bernstein Takes on the Makers of Pradaxa

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Dangerous drug related to severe bleeding issues and in some cases even death…

It is rare that we get excited to take on a case here at the Edward M Bernstein and Associates law firm.  Generally it is simply a matter of evaluating the facts and aggressively helping our injured clients.  We love helping injury and accident victims in Las Vegas, but most of the injuries we deal with are not life and death, but more related to pain, suffering and work loss.

When we began hearing rumors about Pradaxa a little over a year ago, our fears were raised.  Here was a drug which had serious side effects that were un-reverseable and the maker seemed more intent on marketing the drug, rather than warn the doctors of the serious side effects patients were experiencing.

In one six month sampling we looked at, there were over 270,000 prescriptions written with 237 deaths and over 1,000 serious major medical complications.  This is about .45% of patients taking this dangerous drug either died or had a serious medical issue.  That’s about 1 for every 200 people.

Why were we excited to get the first Ptadaxa case in Nevada?  Because we know how dangerous this drug has been to some people (even if great number of people were totally fine).  With all medications come risk, but the risk in the Pradaxa cases is excessive and compounded by Boehringer Ingelheim’s silence to inform patients of these substantial risks.

If you have a loved one who died or had a major bleeding issue while on Pradaxa, please give us a call today to see if you have a case!

Internal Bleeding or Heart Attack Linked to Pradaxa

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Critics of Pradaxa claim that manufacturer, Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, would have discovered the extent of the drug’s dangerous side effects if the company had not rushed the drug through the approval process to beat competing drugs to the market. It is the drug maker’s responsibility to conduct thorough testing for potential deadly side effects and warn users of the extent of all risks. Boehringer did not uphold this responsibility and those individuals and families affected by their negligence should consider speaking with legal counsel to understand their rights.

 

 

Symptoms include but are not limited to:

• Brain Hemorrhaging/Bleeding
• Gastrointestinal (GI) Bleeding
• Kidney Bleeding
• Internal Bleeding
• Heart Attack/ Cardiac Injury
• Death

Hundreds of deaths worldwide have already been attributed to this dangerous drug. Causes of death from Pradaxa use have occurred from:

• Having a medical condition such as an ulcer that began bleeding and could not be stopped
• A traffic accident or trauma resulting in unstoppable bleeding
• Not being able to receive emergency surgery due to risk of uncontrollable bleeding
• Heart attack (Myocardial infarction)

If you or someone you love has suffered excessive and uncontrollable bleeding, or a heart attack after taking Pradaxa, you deserve compensation. Call us immediately at (702)240-0000 to see if you have a case. – Edward M Bernstein and Associates

Movable Drop-Side Cribs Banned

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The Consumer Product Safety Commission is banning all movable drop-side cribs because due to safety concerns.

The ban will take effect in June, stopping the manufacture, sale, resale, and distribution of drop-side cribs. The new rules also will prohibit drop-side crib use at motels, hotels, and child care facilities.

Federal regulators say drop-side cribs are blamed for more than 30 infant deaths in the last 10 years.

An article in the USA Today says, “In addition to at least 32 deaths in drop-side cribs, there were 14 deaths because  of entrapment that could have been caused by a drop-side, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission http://content.usatoday.com/

topics/topic/Organizations/Government+Bodies/Consumer+Product+Safety+Commission , which issued the new crib standards.”

CPSC urges consumers to check at www.cpsc.gov to see if their drop-side crib has been recalled. If it hasn’t, CPSC says to stop using the drop side and check for broken or missing parts.

And if you or someone in your family has been hurt by a defective product, contact my office at 702-240-0000 or go to www.edbernstein.com.

CPSC’s ban on drop-side cribs takes effect in June

By Jayne O’Donnell, USA TODAY

Cribs that have movable drop-down sides were banned by federal regulators Wednesday after reports of more than 30 infant deaths in 10 years.

Find article at: USA Today

Dangerous Toys still on Store Shelves

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Although the process of getting dangerous toys off store shelves has improved in recent years, a consumer group says there are still far too many toys on store shelves that pose a health risk to children. The U.S. Public Interest Research Group says some toys contain toxic chemicals and many are choking hazards.

The government agency that regulates toy makers, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), says toy-related injuries sent more than 250,000 children to emergency rooms and 12 of those children died in 2009 because of toy-related injures.

Below is a list of the toys the group thinks are dangerous and a link to a WebMD article about the study. If you or someone you love is hurt by a dangerous product or drug, call my office at 702-240-0000 or go to www.edbernstein.com.

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Drug company to pay $750 million

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A British drug company has agreed to pay $750 million to settle criminal and civil complaints that it knowingly sold contaminated baby ointment and an ineffective antidepressant for years.

According to a New York Time article, “GlaxoSmithKline sold 20 drugs with questionable safety that were made at a huge plant in Puerto Rico that for years was rife with contamination… Among the drugs affected were Paxil, an antidepressant; Bactroban, an ointment; Avandia, a troubled diabetes drug; Coreg, a heart drug; and Tagamet, an acid reflux drug. No patients were known to have been sickened, although such cases would be difficult to trace.”

The article also says that Cheryl D. Eckard, the company’s quality manager, warned the company of the problems but the company fired her instead of addressing them. For her whistle-blowing efforts, Eckard will get $96 million from the federal government.

If you ever experience dangerous side effects from a drug, call my office at 702-240-0000 or go to www.edbernstein.com.

-Edward M Bernstein and Associates

October 26, 2010

Glaxo to Pay $750 Million for Sale of Bad Products

By GARDINER HARRIS and DUFF WILSON

GlaxoSmithKline, the British drug giant, has agreed to pay $750 million to settle criminal and civil complaints that the company for years knowingly sold contaminated baby ointment and an ineffective antidepressant — the latest in a growing number of whistle-blower lawsuits that drug makers have settled with multimillion-dollar fines.

Find this article at: NY Times

Graco Stroller Recall: 5 years after deaths?

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Last week 2 million Graco strollers were recalled because 4 babies died of strangulation. But the baby deaths happened between 2003 and 2005. So now consumer advocates are asking: why are they just being recalled?

Donald Mays, the senior director of product safety for Consumer Reports, said “This troubles me very much. It seems to me way too long before Graco recalled these products. It seems that for this company there are lots of cases where injuries mounted before something was done.”

But the president of Graco told the media the recall was recently prompted because many more parents were buying and selling secondhand strollers. But no information was given as to why these same strollers weren’t recalled 5 years ago.

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Toyota Recalls 1.53 million

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An article in the USA Today says that just when it seemed Toyota was putting its quality issues behind it, the company announced another recall of 1.53 million cars. According to the article, in the last year Toyota has now called back more than 11.5 million cars and trucks worldwide for defects.

Below is a list of the model affect by this most recent recall and an explanation of what’s wrong from Toyota.

If you or someone you love is ever hurt by a defective product, call my office at 702-240-0000 or go to www.edbernstein.com.

-Edward M Bernstein and Associates
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