Boston Injury Lawyer Blog

May 30, 2013

Woman Injured After Hit-and-Run Accident in Worcester, MA

A Worcester woman was seriously injured after a hit-and-run crash early this morning.

The victim, 24, was struck around midnight while crossing the street at the intersection of Chandler and Wellington Streets. Police found the young woman lying in the middle of the road with severe hip and facial wounds.

Witnesses who saw the accident reported a small, dark-colored SUV flee the scene toward Main Street. According to police, it appeared that the woman was struck and rolled on top of the car and then fell back onto the ground. The victim was transported to a local hospital where she is currently listed in stable condition. Police are still investigating the accident.

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According to a report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 4,280 pedestrians were killed as a result of motor-vehicle crashes and 70,000 were injured in pedestrian accidents in 2010. The number of pedestrian fatalities in 2010 accounted for 13% of all motor-vehicle accident fatalities and the number of injuries accounted for 3% of the total amount of individuals injured in a traffic accidents.

Most hit-and-run accidents occur in metropolitan areas where there is a high volume of car and pedestrian traffic. In fact, in 2010, the NHTSA reported that 73% of all pedestrian accidents occurred in urban settings, and typically at non-intersections (79%). Weather conditions, as reported by the NHTSA do not seem to have an impact on the amount of pedestrian fatalities however the majority of these types of accidents usually take place during nighttime hours. About 1 in 5 pedestrians killed in 2010, were the victim of a hit-and-run motor-vehicle accident, the NHTSA reported.

Pedestrian accidents occur for a variety of reasons, and may be attributed to not only the actions of a motor-vehicle operator, but the actions of a pedestrian as well. Driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, speeding and reckless driving, and distracted driving by motor-vehicle operators are the most common factors that cause pedestrian accidents. About 20% of drivers involved in pedestrian accidents fled the scene according to the NHTSA. In some cases, pedestrians’ actions caused accidents. Actions such as alcohol consumption (leading to impaired judgment) was the most prominent factor, as well as failing to follow road signals, such as crosswalk signals, and improperly crossing intersections.
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May 29, 2013

CPSC Says Majority of Child Drownings Happen in Backyard Pools

by Altman & Altman

According to a new US Consumer Product Safety Commission report, the majority of child drowning deaths are taking place in backyard pools. Drowning remains the number one cause of accidental child deaths for kids between ages 1 and 4 and minorities.

At Altman & Altman, LLP, Boston personal injury lawyers represent the families of kids injured or killed in a Massachusetts drowning accident. We handle pool and spa drowning incidents involving premises liability, products liability, negligence and wrongful death.

Per the CPSC’s latest findings:

May 23, 2013

US Renal Care to Pay $7.3 Million Medicare Fraud Settlement Stemming From Whistleblower Case Alleging Drug Overbilling

by Altman & Altman

The US Justice Department says that US Renal Care will pay $7.3 million to settle allegations that its Dialysis Corporation of America submitted false Medicare claims, billing more for Epogen, an anemia medication, than what it actually gave to dialysis patients. The accusations stem from a Qui Tam lawsuit filed by whistleblower Laura Davis.

DCA, which has over 100 outpatient dialysis clinics, is accused of billing Medicare not only for the amount of Epogen used by patients but also for the overfill that was left in the vials. The company purportedly didn’t do anything to use this excess and there was even a time when reimbursement for Epogen purportedly made up over 25% of the company’s revenue for medical services.

Davis, a nurse who worked at a DCA clinic, filed her whistleblower lawsuit in 2008. She claims that she first reported the billing discrepancies to the company but that no one paid attention to her. Under the False Claims Act’s qui tam provisions, Davis is entitled to a percentage of the multimillion-dollar recovery. The DOJ says that she will receive $1,314,000.

Examples or Medicare billing fraud:
• Billing for medical services never provided • Conducting medical tests the patient needs and billing Medicare for them • Billing twice for the same equipment or services • Upcoding: billing for a more expensive service than what was actually provided to a patient • Unbundling: Billing separately for certain services that are typically done together and can be billed collectively and at less of a cost
Massachusetts False Claims Act
The state has its own False Claims Act that offers whistleblowers financial incentives for reporting fraud. Recently, certain amendments were made to the Act to further encourage people to come forward and report fraud abuse. For example, now a court can no longer eliminate or lower the percentage a successful whistleblower can get. Also, a whistleblower now doesn’t have to be the “original” source of the fraud information. Additional information to the knowledge that is already in the public domain will suffice.

U.S. Renal Care to Pay $7.3 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations, DOJ, May 21, 2013
Update: Whistleblower allegations about Medicare fraud led to $7.3 million settlement, The Dallas Morning News, May 22, 2013

More Blog Posts:
Nursing Home to Pay $2.7M for Medicaid Fraud Claims Brought to Light By Whistleblower, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, March 23, 2013
Generic Drug Manufacturer Ranbaxy Will Pay $500M To Settle in False Claims Act and Whistleblower Allegations Involving Medicaid/Medicare Fraud & Pharmaceutical Fraud, Drug Injury Lawyer Blog, May 14, 2013 Continue reading

May 21, 2013

Do Boston Surgical Mistakes Cause Massachusetts Hospitals to Profit?

by Altman & Altman

According to a recent Journal of American Medicine study, hospitals make more money when surgical errors occur. The reasons for this is that patients who are the victims of this type of medical mistake often have to undergo more surgical procedures and extend their hospital stay in order to recover, which means that their hospital bills inevitably go up.

The study, called Relationship Between Occurrence of Surgical Complications and Hospital Finances, found that when surgical errors take place, hospitals are paid about $40,000 more for patients who have private insurance and $2,000 for those with Medicare. The researchers say that modifying the payment system, which would put a halt to rewarding poor medical care (perhaps even offer incentives for great medical care), could decrease the number of medical mistakes that happen. However, they were careful to note that they are not implying that hospitals are encouraging their surgeons to make mistakes in order to make more money.

Out of 34,256 people who underwent surgery at one hospital in Texas in 2010, 1,820 of them suffered complications that were preventable, including infected incisions, blood clots, and pneumonia. The median length of hospital stay for victims of medical mistakes went up to 14 days-that’s four times more than the average stay for patients who didn’t experience surgical errors. Meantime, hospital revenue was about $30,500 greater for patients who were the victims of surgical errors.

May 20, 2013

3 Serious Dog Attacks in Bridgewater, MA, But No Help from Animal Control

by Altman & Altman

The town of Bridgewater, MA is facing a serious issue following the resignation of the town’s animal control officer and three serious dog attacks since mid-February.

Police say they are without backup when it comes to animal-related emergency calls since Eric Badger, Bridgewater’s Health Agent and part-time animal control officer, resigned from his positions back in February of this year.

“Right now, there’s nowhere to turn,” Police Lieutenant Tom Schlatz said. Without an Animal Control officer in town, “there’s a certain follow-up that’s not being done.”

According to the town’s officials, Bridgewater police has responded to three separate dog attacks over the last six weeks.

On April 9, a woman was attacked while walking her own dog when a 4-year old boxer, lunged at the woman’s dog. The boxer bit the woman in the leg, leaving puncture wounds on her calf. One week after that incident, on April 16, an 11-year old was bitten by a dog at a residence and taken to the hospital for injuries on her arms and wrists. On May 12, a Shaw Road resident called police after his 6-year old daughter was bitten by an American bull dog while playing with her friends.

In all three cases, police stated that they left messages with Badger, who later said he would not respond to the messages because he had already resigned from his post as animal control officer. Badger said that the animal control officer would step in in these incidents only if the dogs had not been vaccinated. All three of the dogs in these cases had been vaccinated, and will remain in their homes.

Badger, who received only a $100 stipend each week for responding to animal-related calls on an on-call basis, said he didn’t have a real budget to work with. He stated that he did not even have a crate to keep animals quarantined and in one instance, had to call upon the help of a neighboring town’s animal control unit for assistance.
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May 15, 2013

Supreme Judicial Court Orders new Massachusetts Premises Liability Trial in Framingham Injury Lawsuit by Man Paralyzed with SCI from Trampoline Jump Into Wading Pool

by Altman & Altman

Massachusett’s highest court is mandating that there be a new trial in the Framingham premises liability lawsuit filed by Cleber Dos Santos against two property owners. Dos Santos became paralyzed from the chest down after he flipped off a trampoline into an inflatable wading pool in 2005. The defendants, Jose Coleta and Maria Coleta, are his in-laws.

At the time, the plaintiff was a 29-year-old construction worker. He contends that Jose placed the trampoline next to the pool. After accumulating hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical expenses, Dos Santos, his wife, and son (the latter two witnessed the incident) would go on to sue the Coletas for Framingham, MA personal injury.

In 2008, a Middlesex Superior Court jury ruled for the defendants. Dos Santos then appealed, but the Appeals Court upheld the jury’s decision, which took into consideration that landowners are not responsible for making warnings in circumstances where the peril is obvious to anyone with reasonable perception and average intelligence.

May 8, 2013

Measure Would Give Victims of Massachusetts Sex Abuse Lawsuits Until Age 55 to Sue for Personal Injury

by Altman & Altman

A measure is being proposed that would raise the statute of limitations for victims of Massachusetts child sex abuse so that they would have until age 55 to sue for personal injury damages. Currently, most victims in the state have only until they turn 21 to file a civil case-save for an exception to the law that lets older people sue an alleged abuser if the sex abuse lawsuit is submitted within three years of when the victim first discovered that he/she was molested.

While some are questioning whether allowing for a child sex abuse case after so much time has passed could weigh unfairly against those accused-by this point memories might be vaguer and there may not be as many witnesses-other believe that giving victims more time to sue is in their best interests. If you were the victim of Massachusetts sexual abuse, please contact our Boston sexual assault law firm to request your free case assessment.

Child Sex Abuse

May 6, 2013

MA Man Dies after Boat Crash on the Taunton River

by Altman & Altman

A Taunton man was killed yesterday after a boating accident on the Taunton River, and the boat’s operator has been charged with homicide by vessel while operating under the influence.

The crash occurred around 6 p.m. when the boat’s operator Anthony Rose, 46, crashed the boat into a tree in the water, killing his cousin Manuel Pinhero, 47. Investigators say Rose had been under the influence of alcohol and was traveling at a high rate of speed at the time of the accident.

Police received emergency calls around 5:45 p.m. from other boaters who witnessed the accident. After the accident, Rose allegedly drove the boat ashore near east Water Street in Taunton, where he and other passengers were met by Massachusetts Environmental Police. After failing field sobriety tests, Rose was placed under arrest and was charged with OUI homicide by vessel and negligent operation of a boat. He was arraigned in court this morning and held on $10,000 bail. The crash is still under investigation.

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Just as with driving a car, operating a boat comes with high responsibility. Some of the main reasons people get into boating accidents include careless operation, inattention, inexperience, passenger behavior, speeding, and substance use. There are many different types of boat accidents, including boats colliding with other boats, boats flooding, passengers falling overboard, water sports mishaps, and as was the case yesterday boats colliding with fixed objects.
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April 30, 2013

Newton, Massachusetts Bus Accidents Sends 34 Kids With Minor Injuries to Hospitals

by Altman & Altman

According to State Police, at least 34 Massachusetts middle school kids who sustained minor injuries in a Newton bus accident were sent to local hospitals today. Neck pain, head pain, and back pain, were among the complaints raised by some of the children, while others suffered bumps and bruises.

The bus collision was a three-vehicle accident that occurred early in the morning. Even though the incident is still under investigation, police say it appears that the bus rear-ended another auto that was stopped at a traffic light, propelling that motor vehicle into another stopped vehicle.

Rear-End Crashes A rear-end accident can result in injuries for everyone involved. Often, it is those in the car that is rear ended who will experience the brunt of impact and potentially suffer from soft tissue injuries, whiplash, disc damage, carpal tunnel injuries, knee injuries, ankle injuries, traumatic brain injury, head injury, and burns. That said, those in the vehicle that that did the rear-ending are not immune from getting hurt-especially if the auto was moving at a fast speed and was forced to abruptly stop by slamming into the car in front of it.

April 30, 2013

Owner Cited in Aftermath of Fatal Allston, MA Fire

by Altman & Altman

The property owner of a two-and-a-half story Allston apartment has been cited after a deadly fire this weekend.

Anna Belokurova, the owner of the residence at 87 Linden Street, was cited for illegal occupancy in the basement and overcrowding of the house. According to officials, 18 people had been living in the home at the time of the fire. The house had also not been inspected since 1992.

The fire, which is still under investigation, broke out around 6:30 on Sunday morning, and claimed the life of Boston University student, Binland Lee.

Three residents were rescued by firefighters using ladders, while one resident jumped from an upper story to escape the fire Deputy Chief Stephen Dunbar said. According Dunbar, firefighters had tried to reach Lee who was in the attic at the time, but were unable to reach her.

Six firefighters and nine of the building’s occupants sustained non-life threatening injuries during the fire.
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