Government will propose banning flavors used in e-cigarettes
President Donald Trump said Wednesday his administration will propose banning thousands of flavors used in e-cigarettes to combat a recent surge in underage vaping.
Health Care
Articles
State health department receiving $21M grant to combat drug overdoses
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has awarded the Indiana State Department of Health a three-year, $21 million grant to help prevent and detect drug overdoses.
DTCI: Neglected DEA regulatory obligations that ruin pharmacies
Most pharmacies’ legal and financial exposure is not with the diversion of controlled substances (e.g., stealing, selling or dispensing drugs without a legitimate medical purpose); it is instead with the tedious, prosaic record-keeping requirements that often go neglected.
Reports: OxyContin maker negotiating possible $12B settlement
Purdue Pharma and the thousands of state and local governments suing the maker of OxyContin over the nation’s deadly opioid crisis are negotiating a $10 billion to $12 billion settlement under which the Sackler family would give up ownership of the company, according to published reports.
Judge orders opioid maker to pay $572 million in landmark opioid lawsuit
An Oklahoma judge on Monday found Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiaries helped fuel the state’s opioid crisis and ordered the consumer products giant to pay $572 million, more than twice the amount another drug manufacturer agreed to pay in a settlement.
Funds for sex assault victims lag frequently
Indiana law requires the state to cover the costs of performing forensic medical exams on victims of sexual assault, but a recent transfer of nearly $1.5 million has officials conceding the program is underfunded.
Ex-Covance worker’s retaliation lawsuit reinstated
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has reinstated a man’s lawsuit alleging his former employer refused to hire him permanently in retaliation of prior discriminatory complaints he filed.
COA affirms wrongful death rulings against cystic fibrosis patient
Judgments in favor of a hospital, insurance company and ambulance provider were affirmed Thursday in a wrongful death suit brought by a cystic fibrosis patient’s late husband. The woman died from pneumonia after a prolonged ambulance ride toward a lung transplant that ended up at the wrong hospital.
Medically induced disputes causing some heartburn
While the debate rages over the safety of immunizations, family law attorneys in Indiana say that issue is rarely a source of discord between divorced, separated or unmarried parents. However, arguments over medications and doctor’s appointments happen frequently, such as claims that a former spouse goes to the doctor every time the child has a sniffle or others asserting their child should have been taken to an urgent care center instead of the emergency room.
AG Hill won’t appeal injunction of second-trimester abortion law
Indiana will not appeal a federal court order blocking a new law that would have banned the most common form of second-trimester abortions, Attorney General Curtis Hill announced Wednesday.
COA: Claim of man killed by kick falls under Medical Malpractice Act
A man’s estate could not convince an appellate panel that a psychiatric center where he was staying was liable for his death based on the theory of premises liability after he died from injuries sustained after he was kicked by an employee.
Lilly general counsel among 2 departing senior executives
Eli Lilly and Co. announced Thursday that two of its top executives are leaving the company, including Mike Harrington, senior vice president and general counsel, who said he plans to retire at the end of the year.
Midwife ordered to cease operations in wake of child’s death
A northwestern Indiana midwife accused of practicing without a license has been ordered to cease her work following a lawsuit by the state in the wake of the death of an unborn child.
Health care headache: Ruling bars ISBA from offering insurance to solos, but leaders seek options
When the federal district court in Washington, D.C., ruled in a dispute over the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), Indiana State Bar Association president Todd Spurgeon heard the screech of a locomotive coming to sudden stop.
Kiefer & Gaerte: Defending addicted doctors has hidden consequences
The opioid crisis plaguing the U.S. affects people in all walks of life, including doctors. A significant number of physicians suffer from chronic pain and use opioids to cope and to allow them to continue to practice medicine. Lawyers representing these doctors must be aware of the myriad ramifications and consequences of addiction for licensed physicians.
Eckerle & Long: Telemedicine tips for Indiana care providers and counsel
Although the practice of telemedicine has existed for many years, the statutory and regulatory requirements, technology, and best practices are constantly evolving. Attorneys advising health care providers on telemedicine matters should be aware of several key factors in that evolutionary process.
Lawsuit filed against unlicensed Porter County midwife
The state of Indiana is suing a Porter County midwife who says she is exempt from state licensing requirements to continue practicing midwifery. A judge, meanwhile, has ordered the midwife to stop delivering babies and attending to expectant mothers.
Reversal: COA enters judgment for providers in med-mal case
A woman’s medical malpractice claim over a failed femur rod was filed too late and should not have been allowed to proceed, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Friday, reversing a northern Indiana trial court.
Disputed South Bend abortion clinic set to open
A group says it plans to begin accepting patients at an abortion clinic in the northern Indiana city of South Bend next week.
Appellate panel considers med-mal claim in wrongful death suit
An appellate panel considered Wednesday whether a healthcare facility employee’s act of kicking a resident, resulting in his death, could be shielded from liability under the Indiana Medical Malpractice Act.