An ambulance driver is accused of failing to use lights and sirens while attempting to pass vehicles on an Illinois state highway, which allegedly resulted in a collision. Carrie Grandcolas and Jeffrey Grandcolas filed a complaint (part 2) Jan. 11 in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against Abbott EMS, Abbott EMS of Illinois, Mission Care of Illinois, Global Medical…
A motorist claims she suffered a back injury in rear-end collision that resulted in burns from a tens unit used during her physical therapy treatments. Tecia McKinney filed a complaint Jan. 14 in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against Scott Hedger, Upchurch Oil and Ready Mix Concrete Co., alleging negligence. According to the complaint, McKinney was driving her vehicle…
The rate of serious injuries and fatalities continues to hold steady despite declines in overall recordable incidents, though companies with strong safety cultures are less likely to report these serious incidents, according to a report released Monday by information management company ISN Software Corp. ISN analyzed more than 55,000 recordable incidents at U.S. companies between 2017 and 2019, finding that…
As employers wait to see whether the Occupational Safety and Health Administration will create a temporary workplace safety standard for COVID-19, their legal experts hope the federal government avoids what they contend are costly and inflexible measures put in place by individual state OSHAs. President Joe Biden on Jan. 21 signed an executive order calling on OSHA by Feb. 4…
An Alton rehab facility and others are accused of wrongfully putting a heart patient through physical therapy, which allegedly caused him to suffer cardiac arrest. Shelby Gavellas, special administrator of the Estate of James Gavellas filed a complaint Jan. 8 in the Madison County Circuit Court against OSF Healthcare St. Anthony’s Health Center, Behfar Dianati, M.D., CEP Amerida-Illinois Hospitalists LLP,…
St. Elizabeth’s Hospital is accused of failing to properly diagnose and treat a patient’s brain hemorrhage, which allegedly caused her to be permanently disabled. Tracy Perkins, as guardian of the person and Estate of Ralpha Perkins-Davis, a disabled person, filed a complaint Jan. 5 in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against Kevin Thompson, M.D., Huzefa Chinwala, M.D., and St….
The owners of a dog that allegedly attacked a woman who was walking by their house are being sued for allegedly violating the state’s Animal Control Act. Deborah Spivak filed a complaint Jan. 6 in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against Mark Sandheinrich and Karen Sandheinrich, alleging violation of the Illinois Animal Control Act. Spivak alleges in her complaint…
Health care workers pose the greatest risk of developing COVID-19 infections and, relatedly, have been most likely to submit workers compensation claims, according to the results of a study released Tuesday. The study, published in Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine and conducted by AF Group in Lansing, Michigan, and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, revealed that…
A former truck driver for a gas and chemical company is alleging he was told to resign or be fired in retaliation for filing a workers’ compensation claim. Joel Straus filed a complaint Jan. 4 in the Madison County Circuit Court against Air Products and Chemicals Inc., alleging retaliatory discharge. Straus was employed as a truck driver for Air Products…
The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on workers compensation claims varied substantially by state in the first half of 2020, with claims figures significantly affected by outbreak severity and whether a coronavirus presumption order or law was in place, according to a study released Thursday by the Workers Compensation Research Institute. Cambridge, Massachusetts-based WCRI researchers said there was “tremendous variation…
