Angel Reyes Blog : Angel Reyes : Texas Litigation Lawyer and Attorney : Dangerous Drugs : Wrongful Death : Business Litigation

Dinesh Thakur was a whistleblower for the generic drug maker, Ranbaxy Laboratories in Gurgaon, India, 20 miles south of New Delhi. Due to his efforts, on May 13 of this year, Ranbaxy pleaded guilty to seven federal criminal counts of selling adulterated drugs with intent to defraud, failing to report that its drugs didn't meet FDA specifications and intentionally making false statements to the government.  Ranbaxy was ordered to pay $500 million in fines, forfeitures and penalties, which is the largest amount ever levied against a generic drug company.  However, no Ranbaxy executives were charged with crimes.  Thakur's testimony as a whistleblower was also unsealed.  Under federal whistleblower law, he will receive more than $48 million for his part in the exposure of the drug company's wrongdoings.

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Author:  Brooke Cohen

The Wall Street Journal put out a timely article today entitled “Outcomes are Mixed for Pelvic Procedure”. I say timely because the product-liability lawsuits against five manufacturers of transvaginal mesh are in full swing, and as a female attorney who is handling mesh cases, this article most definitely caught my eye when it quoted a study published in the Journal of American Medical Association finding, “long-term benefits are limited for women who undergo an operation to treat a common condition called pelvic organ prolapse, which can lead to urinary problems and discomfort.”

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According to the Associated Press, a federal safety board just recommended that states should cut their drunken driving threshold by nearly 1/2, from .08 blood alcohol level to .05.  Apparently research shows that the .05 standard has significantly reduced deaths in other countries. In fact, over 100 countries have adopted this .05 standard.  Within ten years in Europe, traffic deaths related to drunken driving were reduced by more than half. So what does a .05 alcohol level mean to drivers?  It means a woman weighing less than 120 pounds can get a DUI after one drink, and a man weighing 160 pounds can be hauled off for two drinks. A drink is considered 12 ounces of beer, 4 ounces of wine or 1 ounce of 80-proof alcohol.

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According to last month's poll by researches at the University of Michigan, 42% of parents gave over-the-counter cough and cold medications to their children under the age of 4.  Additionally, 44% gave them multi-symptom cough and cold medications.  And 25% gave these toddlers decongestants.  The survey comes a whopping five years after these drugs' packages included warnings against using them in very young children. 

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Zolpidem is a prescription sleep medication that is sending more and more people to emergency rooms from its serious side effects.  Never heard of Zolpidem?  Well, I bet you've heard of Ambien.  Zolpidem is the active ingredient in Ambien, Ambien CR, Edluar and Zolpimist.  But the most common among these is Ambien.

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We all know the dangers of texting and driving. With so many public service campaigns warning us, how could we not?   But knowing and acting are two different things.  

You're behind the wheel of your car, paying close attention to the road.  Then you suddenly hear the tune of your choice for your text message alert. Hey, it could be your boss, your spouse, your child – someone and something important.  What do you do?  Chances are, you do what most people do – read the text.  And if the  message is important enough, what's the next thing you do?  You respond, of course.  Texting has become so popular in our culture, it often replaces phone conversation, even for those of us middle-aged and over.

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Karl Magerheimer owns a family bounce house business for which Texas law requires him to carry $1 million in liability insurance. Of course, kids get hurt by bounce houses that are not properly secured and flip over. So this law is not unreasonable.  Other businesses required to have insurance covering injuries, deaths and property damage include home exterminators, air conditioning repairmen, tow truck drivers and many more.

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Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI) affects approximately 13 million American women.  This embarrassing condition can literally change a woman's life, as she never knows when she'll leak urine while coughing, laughing, sneezing, having intercourse or performing virtually any physical activity.  Suzanne McClain is one of these women. 

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As we all know, many veterans must deal with the devastating effects of PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder).  But that's not the only problem soldiers face.  Believe it or not, veterans of both wars have a 75% higher rate of fatal motor vehicle accidents than civilians.  In fact, those STILL in the military have a higher risk of crashing their vehicles months after returning home.  And the men and women who served in multiple combat zones are at the highest risk of those accidents.

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