Last week, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced its plans to regulate—for the first time—the levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that manufacturers can discharge into wastewater. The EPA will begin crafting a rule that places limits on the amount of PFAS that can be discharged into sewage treatment systems and surface waters from…
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Boston Scientific, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of medical devices, is recalling its INGENIO family of pacemakers and CRT-Ps due to the risk of serious adverse health consequences. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has identified this as a Class 1 recall, indicating that the use of these devices may cause serious injuries or…
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is alerting health care providers to stop implanting Medtronic’s Heartware Ventricular Assist Device (HVAD) System after reports of patient deaths. Medtronic, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of medical devices, announced its decision to stop the sale and distribution of the HVAD system and warned physicians of “a higher…
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Koninklijke Philips, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of medical devices, recently issued a recall of some of its breathing devices after reports that foam within those devices might degrade and become toxic, potentially causing cancer. This recall will affect between 3 million and 4 million devices, estimates Philips Chief Executive Frans van Houten. According…
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Medtronic, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of medical devices, recently issued a recall of its Valiant Navion™ thoracic stent graft system. After reports of patient complications, including death, Medtronic is urging physicians to immediately cease the use of the Medtronic device until further notice. The Valiant Navion™ thoracic stent graft system was initially approved…
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The Supreme Court of the United States issued a decision on Thursday, March 25, 2021, that will make it easier to sue nationwide automobile companies for alleged vehicle defects. Ford Motor Company appealed to the Supreme Court after unsuccessfully trying to dismiss two lawsuits filed against it. The lawsuits were brought by the victims of…
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Insurance companies are strengthening their business-loss policies in an attempt to curb claims for disrupted operations related to the coronavirus pandemic. Prior to this movement, most policies failed to include definitions for terms such as “communicable disease,” which led to a wave of lawsuits filed against the insurers. For example, many exclusions said insurers would…
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Icy road conditions have already caused trouble for drivers, as a wave of arctic air heads for Texas. Thursday morning, five people were hospitalized after a twenty-six-vehicle pileup on State Highway 45 near Austin. The accident followed another major crash in Fort Worth where 133 vehicles were involved in a massive pileup on I-35 that…
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