New York Injury Lawyers Blog

December 23, 2019

New Yorkers Sue Doctor for ‘IVF Fertilization Mix-up’

by Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC

Two New Yorkers sued their doctor and fertilization clinic after the alleged medical malpractice caused a tragic mix-up involving three sets of angry parents across the country. According to CBS New York, Annie and Ashot Manukyan went to CHA Fertility Center in Los Angeles for in-vitro fertilization treatments. After the treatment, the New York couple did not become pregnant. Unfortunately, that is because their genetic material was used to impregnate another couple in Los Angeles. The Los Angeles couple actually became pregnant with twins who they believed was their child. Unfortunately, the couple was carrying the child of the Manukyans and another Los Angeles couple. The parents found out at birth of the mix-up when one of their children was a different race than the parents.

The Manukyan’s were immediately notified and because the birth parents wanted to keep the child, they had to sue in New York courts to have their genetic child brought to them. In a recording released by the attorneys for the Manukyan’s, the genetic mother broke down crying when she discussed her heartbreak over not carrying and delivering her own child. The New York judges ruled in favor of the birth parents and the child is now living in New York.

December 21, 2019

Government Report Shows Illegal Construction Rampant in New York

by Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC

A new government report on the construction industry shows serious defects in compliance across the state. Released by Senator James Skoufits, he says the report shows that, “Firefighters are going to die. Tenants are going to die if the state and local officials do not start prioritizing code enforcement.” According to the Senator’s ‘bombshell’ report, the problems with regulating the industry are widespread and involve everyone from the executive branch to the local municipalities.

Released in August 2019, the report details serious dangers with the state’s construction industry. According to NBC New York, the report specifically faults:

December 17, 2019

Under New Childhood Sex Abuse Law, Rockefeller University Faces 100s of Lawsuits for Sex Abuse Coverups

by Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC

A new law goes into effect this month, which gives victims of sex abuse a year to bring civil lawsuits against any responsible person or entities. The one-year filing period is known as a “look-back window” and will give childhood victims additional time to hold their perpetrators responsible when they would otherwise be time-barred because of the statute of limitations. The third-in-the-nation law passed last year in New York and upended the previous time limit, which generally prevented a victim of sex abuse from filing a lawsuit after turning 23. Going forward, a victim of childhood sex abuse may file a civil lawsuit until

Unsurprisingly, victims seeking long-awaited justice for the crimes against them have come out in full force and accused numerous New York institutions, such as the Boy Scouts of America, the Catholic Church, and Rockefeller University. At the renowned Upper East Side medical school, Rockefeller University officials said that “several hundred” victims of Dr. Reginald Archibald plan to file a lawsuit. The medical school is suing its insurers because they allegedly refuse to pay for any defense or potential settlement of the sex abuse claims. Dr. Archibald worked as a professor and senior physician from 1948 to 1980, according to Patch.com.

December 14, 2019

Blood Infection Outbreak at NY Hospital Caused by Opioid-Stealing Nurse

by Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC

An outbreak of a rare blood infection in a New York hospital traced back to an opioid-stealing nurse, reports Gizmodo. According to the technology and science website, six cancer patients developed a serious and rare blood infection from June to July 2018 at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo, New York. According to the website, none of the victims died as a result of being infected by Sphingomonas paucimobilis.

The bacterial infection is typically found in soil and water, thus rarely harming people. When six people all came down with the infection – which sickens individuals to the point of constant vomiting – hospital authorities say they suspected a medical contamination. After an investigation at the hospital, authorities realized the common thread between the patients involved a nurse who administered their hydromorphone intravenously. Hydromorphone is a powerful opioid. In response to questions by hospital investigators, the nurse admitted that she removed a certain amount of medication for the patients and then diluted the syringe with water so the dosage appeared unchanged.

December 11, 2019

These Thirty Hospitals Rank Best in the State

by Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC

New York hospitals regularly score on the lower end when it comes to patient safety. According to the CMS, almost 50 hospitals in New York are “one-star facilities” – denoting the lowest possible score by the government agency. In addition to a plethora of poorly-performing hospitals, New York also has several high performing medical facilities. According to U.S. News and World Report, which compiles a list of hospital rankings each year, the system for judging hospitals changed slightly this year with a “new outcome measure” meant to examine how many patients must be readmitted to other hospitals.

According to the national newsmagazine (via LoHud), New York’s top 30 hospitals are:

1. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital-Columbia and Cornell in New York

December 8, 2019

New York ‘Tweaks Construction Safety Law

by Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC

Amid widespread noncompliance and mounting accidents in New York’s most dangerous industry, City Council ‘tweaked’ its construction safety laws last month. The law originally passed in 2017 in the aftermath of several serious and preventable construction accidents has failed to put a dent in the number of construction worker deaths, which continue to increase each year. The law requires all construction workers in the city to receive at least 30 hours of safety training by Dec. 1 2019, according to City & State New York. By Sept. 1, 2010, the number of training hours required increases to 40 hours.

The bold and controversial law has largely languished since it passed, according to the newspaper. The Department of Buildings has pushed back the deadline for worker training several times after failing to implement the standards and programs required by the training courses. The government agency says that the City Council has made the problem worse by continually revising the law since 2017. Allegations of widespread fraud have been reported in the news, describing a black market for safety training certificates and online courses that lack adequate identity verification policies.

December 4, 2019

New York Finally Identifies Hospitals with Antibiotic- Resistant ‘Super Bug’

by Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC

New York regulators finally released a list of hospitals and nursing homes where a deadly and drug-resistant fungus has been found. The disclosure comes after months of haranguing public health officials who had hoped to remain tight-lipped, fearing that naming facilities with the antibiotic-resistant ‘super bug’ could lead to an exodus of patients and nursing home residents. According to the CDC, the fungus – referred to as C. auris – kills one out of every three people it infects. For those with weak immune systems, such as nursing home residents, the number is even higher. Because the fungus appears to be resistant to antibiotics, the CDC is warning that C. auris poses a “global health threat.”

In general, antibiotic-resistant strains a growing health problem. Public health experts say these so-called ‘superbugs’ infected more than 2.8 million people last year and caused more than 35,000 deaths, reported by LoHud.com. The tri-state area appears to be ground-zero for the problem in America, with its massive population living in close proximity and its status as an international travel hub and destination. The CDC reports that the majority of C. auris infections are at facilities the New York metropolitan area, stretching from New Jersey to Long Island and up into Westchester. After declining to release the list of facilities with the deadly fungus, the New York Department of Health finally relented last month.

Here’s a list of facilities in Westchester and Rockland County which have reported infections of the ‘superbug’ C. auris:

November 25, 2019

New York Hospitals Continue to Rank Poorly for Patient Safety

by Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC

New York hospitals continue to rank poorly compared to the rest of the country, according to the nonprofit LeapFrog’s rankings released last month. According to Washington D.C. organization, which ranks hospitals on 12 factors related to patient safety and then assigns a letter grade between A and F to each hospital, New York is the 47th worst state for patient safety at hospitals. Just 7.5 percent of New York hospitals received an “A” – a pathetically low percentage compared to states like Maine, Utah and Virginia, which received “A” at 50 to 60 percent of their hospitals.

The Empire State has almost three times as many hospitals with a “D” rating (30) than an “A” rating (11), according to LoHud.com. Unlike the federal government which takes medical outcomes and other indicators of quality into account when assigning its maligned star-rating system, Leapfrog Group focuses on preventable safety issues. Examples include mistakes like leaving sponges or medical equipment in bodies or preventable infections caused by unsanitary conditions. The nonprofit told Lohud.Com that its ranking system provided more helpful information to patients “because it focuses on the most serious life-or-death measures.”

Here are the patient safety rankings for hospitals in the Hudson Valley, published for Fall 2019:

November 20, 2019

NYC Rakes in $28 Million from Speed Cameras in 43 Days

by Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC

New York City speed cameras are proving to be a lucrative source of income for city coffers. According to Staten Island Live, the expansion of speed cameras around the City is now generating $455 every minute in revenue. While the fines are only $50 per violation, the massive increase in cameras over the summer has already issued more than 500,000 violations to speeding motorists. The tickets are automatically sent to the owner of any vehicle going more than 10 miles per hour above the speed limit.

The speed cameras are clustered around school zones, according to city officials. After a successful trial showed that the cameras changed drivers behavior over time, politicians in Albany expanded the program over the summer. Beginning on July 11, 2019, the number of school zones with cameras increased substantially from 140 to 750. Overall, this amounts to almost 290,000 cameras installed around school zones in the five boroughs. Further, the cameras started issuing tickets all day – from 6 a.m to 10 p.m. on weekdays. Previously, the cameras only operated only during the time period when school began and ended.

November 14, 2019

New York Troopers Pose as ‘Construction Workers’ and Hand out Tickets

by Law Offices of Thomas L. Gallivan, PLLC

New York police went undercover this month to catch speeding drivers in Westchester by posing as highway construction workers. According to CT Post, the police officers disguised themselves and then staked out work zones on I-684 in what they named “Operation Hard Hat.” The ‘operation’ was apparently successful, with almost 50 tickets issued to drivers in just a couple days. The police say the tickets issued to motorists included traffic violations from talking on the phone while driving to speeding. However, the most common citation involved a violation of New York’s “Move Over” law, which requires motorists to either move out of the lane closest to construction workers or, if that is not possible, slow their vehicle down to a crawl while passing through the work zone.

Under New York law, fines are doubled for motorists when their violation occurs in a work zone. The “work zone trap” set up by New York police in disguise is an increasingly popular way of responding to the increase in car accidents occurring in work zones. Last year, more than 700 crashes in New York occurred in a work zone. These crashes led to 329 injuries and 13 fatalities, according to CT Post. The New York Transportation Commissioner applauded the efforts by Westchester police, saying “The Success of Operation Hard Hat is imperative – it protects our transportation workers and raises awareness to the serious issue of work zone safety.”