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medpundit |
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Friday, July 15, 2005A Texas federal judge has issued a blistering 249-page order and sanctioned a high-profile plaintiffs law firm, accusing the plaintiffs bar of manufacturing a "phantom epidemic" of the lung disease silicosis. And at least one legal expert suggests a similar finding might come if courts look closely at recent absestosis litigation. [Ya think?! -ed.] Judge Janis Graham Jack, in a June 30 ruling, noted that more than 9,000 plaintiffs in the multidistrict litigation case had been seen by about 8,000 physicians who diagnosed and treated them for every other health problem, but never noted the presence of silicosis. The silica illness diagnoses came from just 12 doctors, most of whom were in the employ of various mobile-screening operations, doing what she called "assembly-line diagnosing. (emphasis mine) The law firm in question is the law firm of this man who told Mother Jones: With Bush out of the state, some have urged O'Quinn to run for governor of Texas. When reporters asked the attorney what he thought of the suggestion, he downplayed the possibility. But if it ever happened, he said, he'd use his personal wealth to finance his campaign. "Since I have my own money," he said, "they can't corrupt me." No, it's too late for that. P.S. They certainly would find the same thing with asbestos. They'd also find that a lot more money has been scammed. UPDATE: An inquiring mind wants to know: So, what penalty will be imposed on the doctors, or will they simply walk away not having any responsibility for participating in the crime? Good question. If it's like the penalty for the lawyers involved, not much. On the other hand, there must be an awful lot of people out there who were misdiagnosed with silicosis (and asbestosis) who have potential malpractice suits. That is, assuming they weren't in on the scam, too. (And in too many cases, they appear to be well aware that the whole thing is about money, not illness.) posted by Sydney on 7/15/2005 05:14:00 PM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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