Med Mal News

Ephedra Ban Will Soon Be in Place

On Dec. 30, 2003, the FDA issued a consumer alert on the safety of dietary supplements containing ephedra. The alert advised consumers to immediately stop buying and using ephedra products. Ephedra's principal active ingredient is ephedrine, which when chemically synthesized is regulated as a drug. In recent years, ephedra products have been extensively promoted to aid weight loss, enhance sports performance and increase energy.

Also on Dec. 30, the FDA notified manufacturers that it intends to publish a final rule stating that dietary supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids present an unreasonable risk of illness or injury. The rule would have the effect of banning the sale of these products as soon as it becomes effective, 60 days after publication. Some states have already banned the sale of these products.

CDC Issues New Guidelines for Dental Facilities

In December, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued new recommendations for dental infection control, updating the recommendations it issued in 1986 and 1993. The revised guidelines cover topics not discussed in previous guidelines, including how to reduce exposure to infectious organisms transmitted through blood and other body fluids, the quality of dental office water, new hand hygiene products, and latex sensitivity. The report, “Guidelines for Infection Control in Dental Health-Care Settings, 2003,” can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/ wr/PDF/RR/RR5217.pdf. 

New Jersey Study Finds Discipline of Doctors Lax

The New Jersey Law Journal, an affiliate of Law Journal Newsletters, recently undertook a study of the New Jersey Medical Examiner's Board's record in disciplining doctors who have committed malpractice in the state. In reviewing the board's records back through 1972, the journal found that 290 doctors were described as having repeatedly committed malpractice. Of those doctors, only one in three was permanently denied the right to continue practicing. The others were fined, reprimanded or temporarily suspended from practicing.

The journal's conclusions tend to support the position of the plaintiffs' bar that some bad doctors are allowed to continue practicing despite instances of malpractice, possibly contributing substantially to the rising malpractice insurance premiums in that state.

Connecticut May Not Jump on Damage Cap Bandwagon

Connecticut's legislative Program Review and Investigations Committee voted 10-1 on Dec. 18 to adopt the findings of a comprehensive staff report that was commissioned to study what should be done to improve that state's medical malpractice insurance situation. As in many other states, Connecticut's doctors and insurers have been pushing for caps on damages for plaintiffs' pain and suffering. The report, however, does not endorse such a measure. Instead, it suggests that a combination of increased oversight of doctors, lower contingency fees for lawyers and tighter scrutiny of insurers' requests to raise rates would best solve the problem of rising insurance premium rates. In addition, the report suggests that a fund be created to help buffer the blow to doctors and other health care providers when premium rates must be increased. This fund would be bankrolled by monies collected from each of the state's hospitals ($5000 per year), doctors ($100 per year) and attorneys ($50 per year).

California Nurse-to-Patient Ratio Causes Hospital Casualty

California's new rules on minimum nurse-to-patient ratios went into effect Jan. 1, and most hospitals managed to come into compliance on schedule. The new regulations require a four-to-one patient to nurse ratio in emergency departments, a one-to-one ratio in trauma units, and a one-to-two ratio in critical care units, among other requirements. The law is meant to ensure patient safety by mandating that nurse's services not be spread too thin. Before the effective data of the new regulations, hospitals throughout the state had complained that because of a shortage of nurses, they would be unable to meet the new standards without turning patients away for lack of an adequate number of nurses to care for them. The California Healthcare Association, the representative of the state's acute general hospitals, continues to maintain that the nationwide shortage of nurses is going to make it difficult for hospitals to meet the new standards. It has therefore filed a lawsuit against the California Department of Health Services, seeking to alter the new regulations so that they will at least allow for smaller nurse-to-patient ratios during nurses' breaks.

One hospital that may have been adversely affected by the new law has already been closed. Duarte, CA's Santa Teresita hospital's full-service facilities were abruptly shut down January 8 in order to preserve its ability to continue offering care to its 150 nursing home patients. The facility's CEO, Mike Costello, said that the hospital had had numerous financial woes as of late, but noted that the new nurse-to-patient ratio regulations had put additional financial strains on it at a time when nurses are in short supply, the Pasadena Star News reported. Costello noted that signing bonuses and other incentives are now necessary to attract nursing staff, a financial burden the hospital was apparently unable to shoulder.

Ephedra Ban Will Soon Be in Place

On Dec. 30, 2003, the FDA issued a consumer alert on the safety of dietary supplements containing ephedra. The alert advised consumers to immediately stop buying and using ephedra products. Ephedra's principal active ingredient is ephedrine, which when chemically synthesized is regulated as a drug. In recent years, ephedra products have been extensively promoted to aid weight loss, enhance sports performance and increase energy.

Also on Dec. 30, the FDA notified manufacturers that it intends to publish a final rule stating that dietary supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids present an unreasonable risk of illness or injury. The rule would have the effect of banning the sale of these products as soon as it becomes effective, 60 days after publication. Some states have already banned the sale of these products.

CDC Issues New Guidelines for Dental Facilities

In December, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued new recommendations for dental infection control, updating the recommendations it issued in 1986 and 1993. The revised guidelines cover topics not discussed in previous guidelines, including how to reduce exposure to infectious organisms transmitted through blood and other body fluids, the quality of dental office water, new hand hygiene products, and latex sensitivity. The report, “Guidelines for Infection Control in Dental Health-Care Settings, 2003,” can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/ wr/PDF/RR/RR5217.pdf. 

New Jersey Study Finds Discipline of Doctors Lax

The New Jersey Law Journal, an affiliate of Law Journal Newsletters, recently undertook a study of the New Jersey Medical Examiner's Board's record in disciplining doctors who have committed malpractice in the state. In reviewing the board's records back through 1972, the journal found that 290 doctors were described as having repeatedly committed malpractice. Of those doctors, only one in three was permanently denied the right to continue practicing. The others were fined, reprimanded or temporarily suspended from practicing.

The journal's conclusions tend to support the position of the plaintiffs' bar that some bad doctors are allowed to continue practicing despite instances of malpractice, possibly contributing substantially to the rising malpractice insurance premiums in that state.

Connecticut May Not Jump on Damage Cap Bandwagon

Connecticut's legislative Program Review and Investigations Committee voted 10-1 on Dec. 18 to adopt the findings of a comprehensive staff report that was commissioned to study what should be done to improve that state's medical malpractice insurance situation. As in many other states, Connecticut's doctors and insurers have been pushing for caps on damages for plaintiffs' pain and suffering. The report, however, does not endorse such a measure. Instead, it suggests that a combination of increased oversight of doctors, lower contingency fees for lawyers and tighter scrutiny of insurers' requests to raise rates would best solve the problem of rising insurance premium rates. In addition, the report suggests that a fund be created to help buffer the blow to doctors and other health care providers when premium rates must be increased. This fund would be bankrolled by monies collected from each of the state's hospitals ($5000 per year), doctors ($100 per year) and attorneys ($50 per year).

California Nurse-to-Patient Ratio Causes Hospital Casualty

California's new rules on minimum nurse-to-patient ratios went into effect Jan. 1, and most hospitals managed to come into compliance on schedule. The new regulations require a four-to-one patient to nurse ratio in emergency departments, a one-to-one ratio in trauma units, and a one-to-two ratio in critical care units, among other requirements. The law is meant to ensure patient safety by mandating that nurse's services not be spread too thin. Before the effective data of the new regulations, hospitals throughout the state had complained that because of a shortage of nurses, they would be unable to meet the new standards without turning patients away for lack of an adequate number of nurses to care for them. The California Healthcare Association, the representative of the state's acute general hospitals, continues to maintain that the nationwide shortage of nurses is going to make it difficult for hospitals to meet the new standards. It has therefore filed a lawsuit against the California Department of Health Services, seeking to alter the new regulations so that they will at least allow for smaller nurse-to-patient ratios during nurses' breaks.

One hospital that may have been adversely affected by the new law has already been closed. Duarte, CA's Santa Teresita hospital's full-service facilities were abruptly shut down January 8 in order to preserve its ability to continue offering care to its 150 nursing home patients. The facility's CEO, Mike Costello, said that the hospital had had numerous financial woes as of late, but noted that the new nurse-to-patient ratio regulations had put additional financial strains on it at a time when nurses are in short supply, the Pasadena Star News reported. Costello noted that signing bonuses and other incentives are now necessary to attract nursing staff, a financial burden the hospital was apparently unable to shoulder.