News| The Law Firm of Martin L. Leibowitz, P.A.

Practice Areas

News

First Responder Representation

Judge Rules in Favor of First Responder in October 2007

Two Popular Cholesterol Drugs May Not Wok
CHICAGO - Leading doctors urged a return to older, tried-and-true treatments for high cholesterol after hearing full results Sunday of a failed trial of Vytorin. Millions of Americans already take the drug or one of its components, Zetia. But doctors were stunned to learn that Vytorin failed to improve heart disease even though it worked as intended to reduce three key risk factors.
Fighting Back Against Health Insurance Companies
Woman sues her health insurance company after it cancelled her policy once she learned she had been diagnosed with cancer.
Eww! Double dipping just gross, study confirms
“That’s like putting your whole mouth right in the dip!” George Costanza was admonished on the show after he dipped a chip twice at a wake. That’s not too far off, said Clemson University professor Paul L. Dawson.
FDA approves new drug-coated stent
Washington. Fri., Feb. 1, 2008. Artery-opening device is first to hit the U.S. since negative reports in 2006. Medtronic received federal approval to sell its drug-coated stent, the first to hit the U.S. market since safety concerns sank their popularity two years ago.
FDA plans new coated-stent restrictions
REUTERS NEW YORK - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is planning to release new testing requirements for drug-coated heart stents in the next few weeks, the regulatory agency's device chief, Daniel Schultz, told the Wall Street Journal.
Video: Army Study Links Brain Injury and PTSD
Jan. 30: Among U.S. soldiers injured in Iraq, 44 percent of those who lost consciousness are now suffering from post traumatic stress disorder. NBC's Robert Bazell reports. (Nightly News)
Zetia & Vytorin ineffective
Not only did Zetia fail to slow the accumulation
of fatty plaque in the arteries, it actually seemed to contribute to plaque formation in arteries. Millions of patients may be taking a drug that does not benefit them, raising their
risk of heart attacks and exposing them to potential side effects. This news is important to all heart disease and hypertension patients, including Florida's law enforcement officers, firefighters, and correctional officers, and first responders suffering from these conditions in general.
Dupont's Protective Wear for First Responders
DuPont, which created bodysuits to shield first responders from chemicals and fire, is developing new gear to protect the wearer against multiple threats.
Heart & Stroke Deaths Fall in U.S.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Death rates from heart disease and stroke are falling in the United States but heart and artery disease remains the leading cause of death,
Role of platelets in heart disease
Cordis News - Brussels,Belgium
Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death worldwide, accounting for around 30% of all deaths. On the one hand, reductions in risk factors such ...
Health News
Counter Terrorism Magazine to Launch in 2008
Topics to include ‘radical Islamic threat.
Heart attacks often first symptom of heart disease
(Reuters) - Heart attacks are often the first hint that someone has heart disease and they are often fatal the first time.

Here are a few facts about heart attacks and heart disease:
The skinny on cholesterol by Dale Robertson
At the end of the day, it's the LDL number that's likely going to determine if a person will suffer from coronary heart disease.
Judge Rules in Favor of First Responder in October 2007
Judge of Compensation Claims finds that 4 days off work due to incapacitation and inability to earn wages, even though sick time paid for 2 of the 4 days, is sufficient "disability" to trigger "Presumption".
Wakulla County, Florida Fire Department awarded $9,500 by FEMA
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) awarded $9,500 in Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) to the Medart Fire Department in Wakulla County, Florida. Nationally, the fiscal year 2007 AFG awards, which will be distributed in phases, will ultimately provide over $490 million to fire departments and nonaffiliated emergency medical service organizations throughout the country.

Two Popular Cholesterol Drugs May Not Wok

Fighting Back Against Health Insurance Companies

Eww! Double dipping just gross, study confirms

FDA approves new drug-coated stent

FDA plans new coated-stent restrictions

Video: Army Study Links Brain Injury and PTSD

Zetia & Vytorin ineffective

Dupont's Protective Wear for First Responders

Heart & Stroke Deaths Fall in U.S.

Role of platelets in heart disease

Counter Terrorism Magazine to Launch in 2008

Heart attacks often first symptom of heart disease

The skinny on cholesterol by Dale Robertson

Judge Rules in Favor of First Responder in October 2007

If you suffer from one of the protected conditions, you should immediately notify your supervisor and ask that a First Report of Injury or Illness be completed by your employer. Do not assume that your supervisor will automatically prepare this written notice of your injury because he/she heard about your condition through the office grapevine. If you have been diagnosed with high blood pressure, heart disease, tuberculosis, or some other protected condition, Section 440.151 of the Florida Statutes allows you only 90 days from the date of the injury to give your employer notice of your accident. Failure to do so will cause you real problems, including the denial of your claim!

Mr. Leibowitz recently took a case to trial on this very issue. His client was diagnosed in 2000 with heart disease and underwent coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery . At the time, he took time off from work under the Family Medical Leave Act and there was no question in his mind that the employer knew all about his medical condition. This was especially true when his symptoms returned in 2002 and it became necessary for him to undergo a stent placement procedure. At that time, he was still not a member of a protected class, but again, he took more time off from work and was under the impression that his supervisor and other superiors were aware of his heart disease condition.

By 2006, this client had been included in the protected class as of July 1, 2002 by the Florida Legislature’s amendment of Section 112.18. When he learned that he was either going to undergo another CABG surgery or another stent placement surgery, he still did not know of his entitlement to coverage under the Florida Workers’ Compensation Act. He told his supervisor of his impending surgery both before and afterward, took sick leave for two days while out for surgery and recovery, and scheduled himself off work on the weekend with his supervisor’s approval. No one ever asked him to file a First Report of Injury or Illness.

A year later, he learned that he was entitled to Florida Workers’ Compensation benefits based on the presumption that his heart disease condition was related to his employment, due to his clean pre-employment physical examination and his disability on the day of and three days following his surgery. A petition for benefits was filed on his behalf and his employer denied his entitlement to benefits. This denial was based on his not having given notice to the employer of his heart disease, and his not having suffered any disability as a result of his heart disease.

Mr. Leibowitz took the case to trial where it was proven to the Judge of Compensation Claims’ satisfaction that the client’s supervisor was notified by the Claimant of his heart disease both before and after his 2006 stent placement surgery. The Judge also concluded that the four days the client was incapacitated and unable to work was sufficient to entitle him to benefits under the Florida Workers’ Compensation Act.

So remember that you must notify your employer because your First Report of an Injury or Illness begins the claims process, and can end it if you aren’t careful.