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Injury Data Reveals Infrastructure Need for E-Scooter Riders in NY

The uptick in electric scooter riding in New York City has come with a slew of complications, including a rising number of scooter-related injuries . New York City leaders and scooter company officials alike are weighing their options for creating a safer transit environment for these e-scooters. One recent report suggests that the most promising option is to create more third-lane, or bike lane, options for electric scooters. This report, compiled by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), found that most people who are injured in scooter accidents were riding on a sidewalk at the time of their accident. Their research suggests that scooter riders often do not feel safe enough to share the road with cars, so they opt for using sidewalks when bike lanes are not available. While this may keep scooter riders safe from colliding with vehicles, it puts pedestrians who use sidewalks at a greater risk. The data show that three out of every five scooter riders who were injured s...
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Bicycle Helmet Laws in New York

Riding a bicycle in the city is one of the best ways to get around. It’s free, it’s good exercise, and it gives you a close-up look at your surroundings. However, the lack of a protective barrier usually provided by a car necessitates some extra safety precautions. In New York State, everyone under the age of 14 is required by law to wear a helmet while riding on a bicycle, even as a passenger. Children younger than one year of age are not allowed to ride as passengers on a bicycle. There are no explicit laws requiring adults to wear helmets while riding a bike in New York State, but some counties like Rockland and Erie counties have passed laws requiring anyone riding within the county to wear a helmet. Even though there is no law specifically requiring adults to wear a helmet while bike riding, a helmet could be the difference between life and death in a serious accident . According to a report from CBS 2, helmets reduce the risk of serious injury in a bicycle accident by up to 85...
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TRY OR SETTLE? SHOULD PLAINTIFF SETTLE HER TRIP AND FALL CASE WHEN SHE HAS A FRACTURED LEG REQUIRING SURGERY?

Our injured client, a 61-year old female home attendant, tripped and fell , when an employee at the St. Barnabas Hospital Occupational Therapy Department unthinkingly placed a step stool directly behind our client’s feet, just as our client’s back was turned to help her own patient get ready for occupational therapy. Our client took one step back and tumbled right over the step stool.  Due to the clear severity of our client’s injuries, she was immediately taken to St. Barnabas’s Emergency Room with excruciating pain in her left leg. In fact, she had suffered a fracture of the left femur, a broken thighbone. The thighbone is one of the strongest bones in the body, but the fall was so forceful and broke the bone so badly, the doctors at St. Barnabas told our client only surgery could repair it.   The doctors however would not perform the surgery, because our client’s leg was severely swollen around the fracture site.  As a result, her fracture did not heal properly and s...
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Another Romaine Lettuce E coli Outbreak?

Another Romaine lettuce E coli outbreak?  Tanimura & Antle Romaine Lettuce has been linked to two cases of E. coli O157:H7 in Michigan.  A routine sample of the lettuce collected at a Walmart in Comstock Park, MI, and tested by MDARD’s Laboratory Division confirmed positive for  E. coli  0157:H7. Further analysis conducted by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services laboratory determined that the strain of  E. coli  recovered from the product sample is highly related genetically to  E. coli  causing two recent illnesses in Michigan.   The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) is advising consumers not to eat Tanimura & Antle brand romaine lettuce packed as single heads due to food safety concerns.   The lettuce was sold in a zip-top clear plastic bag with a blue label and white lettering. It has the UPC number 0-27918-20314-9 and a white sticker indicating it was packed in Salinas, Calif...
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Court Rules That Workers’ Compensation Principles Should Be Applied to At-Home Workers

In a recent decision from New York State’s Third Department of their Appellate Division, workers’ compensation claims from employees working from home must be decided using the long-standing definitions of what constitutes a “short break” or what is “work-related” or personal. The decision came from the recent case, In the Matter of the Claim of Christopher Capraro, Appellant, versus Matrix Absence Management et al., Respondents. Workers’ Compensation Board, Respondent. In 2016, the claimant, Christopher Capraro, ordered office furniture to use in a home office for his new job. His employer informed Capraro that the company would not reimburse him for the furniture as they had already provided him with the necessary computer equipment for the role. When the unassembled furniture was delivered in boxes on June 13, 2016, Capraro attempted to haul them into his home. In the process, he injured himself. In 2017, Capraro filed for workers’ compensation benefits, claiming the injury sustai...
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2 Mystery Ecoli Outbreaks – Leafy Greens Ecoli Outbreak Again?

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The CDC and FDA have announced two mysterious outbreaks this week. At this time, no particular food item(s) have been identified and no recalls have been announced. Could this mean another Leafy Greens Ecoli Outbreak? Outbreaks Abound – What We Know Outbreak #1  21 people in 8 states are ill 8 people have been hospitalized 1 person (from Michigan) has died. Illness onset dates range from June 6, 2020 to October 5, 2020 The patient age range is from 2 to 75 years Of 16 people who gave information to investigators, eight were hospitalized One person developed HUS Investigators have identified and illness cluster at a restaurant that was not named The patient case count by state is: California (7), Florida (1), Illinois (1), Michigan (2), New Jersey (1), Ohio (7), Utah (1), and Wisconsin (1). Outbreak #2 23 people in 12 states 10 people have been hospitalized Of 15 people who gave information to investigators, 10 were hospitalized, including two who developed hemoly...
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Temporary FDA Guidelines for Food Allergens

In response to supply chain shortages amid the COVID-19 pandemic, in late May the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released, without warning, new temporary guidance that allows manufacturers facing those supply chain shortages to substitute ingredients without changing food labels .  For those with food allergies, this is a very scary thing! Without further ado – FDA Guidelines for Food Allergens: Limits to Regulation Are Not Sufficient to Calm Concern There are limits to the substitutions that manufacturers are allowed to make.  Under this emergency order, manufactures are not allowed to substitute for known allergens without changing the label.  Some ingredients are known to cause “adverse health effect, including food allergens, gluten, sulfites, or other ingredients known to cause sensitivities. Certain substitutions are not allowed, such as: milk eggs fish shellfish peanuts tree nuts wheat soy sesame celery lupin buckwheat molluscan ...
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