Author: YostLaw

Enhanced Underinsured Motorist Coverage – What Every Maryland Driver Needs to Know

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Effective July 1, 2018, Maryland insurance companies will begin to offer Enhanced Underinsured Motorist Coverage (“EUIM”) to individuals with private passenger automobile insurance policies, including motorcyclists. Commonly referred to as “stacking”, this new coverage will allow you to combine, or “stack”, your underinsured motorist coverage (UM) with the policy limits of the at-fault driver, ultimately increasing the amount of money to which you may be entitled, following an auto accident.

For instance, it is June 19, 2018, and you are involved in an auto accident on your way to the grocery store. At present, the existing law provides that your UM coverage only pays for the difference between the at-fault driver’s coverage and your UM coverage. Therefore, if the at-fault driver carried a $30,000 policy, and you had purchased $100,000 of UM coverage, the most you could recover following this accident is $100,000 ($30,000 from the at-fault driver’s policy and $70,000 from your own UM coverage). However, once the EUIM law goes into effect, you will be able to stack your UM policy with the at-fault driver’s policy. Meaning, if your accident were to occur after July 1, 2018, and after you made the election for EUIM, the most you could recover following this accident in this scenario is $130,000 ($30,000 from the at-fault driver’s policy, stacked on top of the $100,000 from your own EUIM coverage).

Why is it necessary for you to make the election for EUIM with your auto insurance carrier? Currently, the minimum required liability coverage for an insured vehicle in Maryland is $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident. For example, under the current law, if you were involved in a serious auto accident and your medical bills were $110,000, you would be personally responsible for $10,000 of those bills. Even more, because all of the money went towards repaying your medical bills, you wouldn’t receive anything for your pain and suffering. This new law, however, will provide extra coverage for injured people when they are involved in accidents with individuals that either have: no insurance; the minimum insurance coverage; or coverage that was less than the coverage you obtained through your own policy.

It is critically important to note that, this coverage is not automatic. Accordingly, in order to obtain EUIM, you must elect so, in writing to your auto insurance carrier, on a specific form. More specifically, the new law requires that optional EUIM be offered to consumers “at the time of purchase of a private passenger motion vehicle liability insurance policy.” Md. Code § 19-509.1(c). For this reason, it is extremely important that when you renew or obtain a new auto insurance policy, that you evaluate how such additional coverage could benefit you if you or a loved one were involved in an auto accident, when deciding whether to select EUIM coverage. For more information or questions regarding auto injuries and/or the new Enhanced Underinsured Motorist Coverage, please call Adam P. Frank at the Yost Legal Group.

Birth Injury Due To Placental Abruption

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The placenta is an organ that develops inside a woman’s uterus during pregnancy. Once a baby is conceived, the placenta forms to supply oxygen and nutrients to the baby, as well as remove waste products from the baby’s blood. The placenta attaches to the uterine wall, and the baby’s umbilical cord arises from it.

In some cases, however, the placenta can separate from the uterine wall, causing the baby to stop receiving an adequate supply of oxygen, and causing the mother to bleed vaginally, up to and including the loss of a life-threatening amount of blood.  Placental abruption can occur if the mother suffers forceful blunt trauma injury, such as from a serious fall or during a car accident, but the placenta can also detach from the uterine wall, completely or partially, due to complications of the pregnancy itself – including a sudden loss of amniotic fluid, very high blood pressure (pregnancy-induced hypertension or preeclampsia) or an infection within the uterus (chorioamnionitis).

Symptoms of placental abruption include vaginal bleeding and abdominal pain, sometimes including back pain, which can start suddenly and be constant or mimic contractions, but typically with little or no time between each contraction.   If there are any signs of a placental abruption an immediate delivery, usually by caesarian (c-section), may be required to stop the dangerous bleeding in the mother and restore the vital supply of oxygen to the fetus.   Failure to promptly deliver the baby can result in permanent brain injury due to loss of oxygen (hypoxia).

Even partial separation of the placenta from the uterine wall can become hazardous in a matter of minutes. It is important that the medical staff that has put you in their care are capable of identifying causes and risk factors of placental abruption and promptly recognizing and treating placental abruption if it occurs.  Management of suspected placental abruption should include prompt assessment of both the mother and baby and includes careful monitoring of the mother’s blood pressure and bloodwork and constant monitoring for any irregularities in the fetal heart rate.

If your child suffered a brain injury at birth, contact The Yost Legal Group today at 1-800-YOST-LAW (800-403-7259). The attorneys at Yost Legal Group are experienced, caring professionals ready to investigate your claim with compassion and determination. Call us today to receive a free, confidential consultation about your possible case.

We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you will never pay an attorney’s fee up front, and you owe us nothing unless we win your case.

Microcephaly Following Hypoxic Brain Injury at Birth

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Microcephaly is a medical condition defined by a small head circumference. It is noticeable as a disproportionately small head for the size of the growing child. There are many different ways this condition can develop, including preventable brain injury at birth, which stunts the growth of the baby’s brain and skull.

Acquired microcephaly in very young children can be caused by lack of oxygen during birth. If signs of the baby suffering from hypoxia during labor and delivery were not promptly recognized by medical professionals and treated by earlier delivery, including emergency caesarian section, and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) therapies, including cooling the infant to lower body temperature (therapeutic hypothermia), the lack of oxygen during labor and delivery can cause brain damage leading to microcephaly.

A complete physical examination is required to evaluate a child with possible microcephaly. It may take up to a few months to discover that your child has been harmed, as repeated skull measurements are taken every few months to determine a decreased rate of head growth and a below average head size.

Reduced head circumference and brain growth can severely impact your child’s development and quality of life.   If your child suffered a brain injury at birth, contact The Yost Legal Group today at 1-800-YOST-LAW (800-403-7259). The attorneys at Yost Legal Group are experienced, caring professionals ready to investigate your claim with compassion and determination. Call us today to receive a free, confidential consultation about your possible case.

We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you will never pay an attorney’s fee up front, and you owe us nothing unless we win your case.

Compartment Syndrome, Post-Operative Onset

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Compartment syndrome is a potentially devastating post-operative complication in which increased pressure results in insufficient blood supply to muscle and nerve tissue within the effected internal space. Causes of compartment syndrome in the post-operative patient include: being left too long in a position during surgery that blocked one or more blood vessels; or, having bandages or casts too tightly applied.

This medical condition can arise in response to bleeding and/or swelling in any area of tissue that has little or no capacity to expand because it is covered by fascia, a tough, inflexible membrane. The role of fascia is to cover and hold muscle tissue in place, but its strength and lack of elastic properties means that in the event there is bleeding or swelling beneath this rigid layer, the fascia will not stretch to relieve the pressure building beneath it. Instead, the fascia layer holds the swelling or bleeding in place, which creates crushing pressure that cuts off the blood supply to the muscle and nerve tissue below. Compartment syndrome occurs most often in the legs, but it can also affect the arms, hands, feet, and buttocks.

Acute compartment syndrome (ACS) is a surgical emergency, and unless the pressure within the effected space is relieved quickly and blood flow to the affected muscle and nerve cells is rapidly restored, necrosis of the soft tissues and permanent disability may occur. The most important factor of outcome is early recognition and speedy surgical intervention to open the fascia (fasciotomy).

The five Ps (pain, pallor, pulselessness, paralysis and paresthesia) are taught as the clinical symptoms of compartment syndrome. Pain is typically ‘out of proportion’ to the injury and is severe enough to require increasing the dosage of pain medication.

If the compartment pressure is left untreated or the diagnosis is delayed, severe rhabdomyolysis, irreversible nerve and/or muscle damage, loss of limb, or even death may occur. Compartment syndrome warrants prompt evaluation and treatment by a trained medical professional.

If you or a loved one has suffered permanent injury due to acute compartment syndrome, contact The Yost Legal Group today at 1-800-YOST-LAW (800-403-7259). The attorneys at Yost Legal Group are experienced, caring professionals ready to investigate your claim with compassion and determination. Call us today to receive a free, confidential consultation about your possible case. We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you will never pay an attorney’s fee up front, and you owe us nothing unless we win your case.

Important Reminders for Personal Injury Plaintiffs

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Chorioamnionitis

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Chorioamnionitis is a serious complication during labor that may result in serious, irreversible injuries to the mother and child at birth.  Affecting approximately 10% of pregnancies, this condition is also known as intra-amniotic infection (IAI).  Chorioamnionitis is characterized by inflammation and infection of the fetal membranes (amnion and chorion) due to a bacterial infection. This intrauterine infection typically occurs when bacteria ascends from the vagina, through the cervix and into the uterus. This condition is most often associated with prolonged labor.

Maternal fever is the most important clinical sign of chorioamnionitis. A temperature greater than 100.4°F is considered abnormal in pregnancy. Chorioamnionitis is most commonly diagnosed based on clinical signs, which should be discovered by the physician during examination. Findings of rapid heart rate (maternal tachycardia and/or fetal tachycardia), a mother’s elevated white blood cell count (leukocytosis), uterine tenderness, and/or malodorous amniotic fluid or vaginal discharge can also aid in diagnosing chorioamnionitis. However, accessing the amniotic fluid or the placenta for culture can be invasive and is sometimes dangerous.

Carefully monitoring the mother’s temperature, especially when labor is prolonged, is an effective way to avoid this potentially deadly complication. A timely diagnosis, with prompt antibiotic treatment and delivery may help reduce the potentially devastating outcome of maternal and neonatal infections. If left untreated, chorioamnionitis can cause sepsis, premature birth and brain damage in babies affected.

The cost of care for a child with cerebral palsy, or any birth injury, is very high. If your child’s birth injury was caused by chorioamnionitis or other intrauterine infection, contact The Yost Legal Group today at 1-800-YOST-LAW (800-403-7259). When you call, you will speak with an experienced Baltimore Medical Malpractice attorney absolutely FREE. We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you will never pay an attorney’s fee up front, and you owe us nothing unless we win your case.

Incompetent Cervix

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An incompetent cervix, also called a cervical insufficiency, is a potentially serious condition of pregnancy that occurs when weak cervical tissue causes or contributes to premature birth or the loss of an otherwise healthy pregnancy. This type of condition has been described by experts as a “diagnostic dilemma”. Because an incompetent cervix can often be difficult to diagnose, physicians should be constantly on the alert for this condition.

If there is any suspicion of this condition, a health care provider could recommend preventive medication during pregnancy (progesterone supplementation), frequent ultrasounds and/or a procedure that surgically closes the cervix with strong sutures (cervical cerclage). Medical management of pre-term labor is also extremely important, including attempts to stop labor and, too, to provide corticosteroid injections if delivery becomes imminent (which “matures” premature fetal lungs, giving “preemies” a better chance to breathe successfully once born).

The causes of incompetent cervix vary and must be determined in a timely matter by medical professionals in order to select the proper method of treatment. If proper care is not taken, extreme premature birth can result, which increases risks of complications in the newborn, such as intraventricular brain bleeds and periventricular leukomalacia which can cause cerebral palsy.

The cost of care for a child with cerebral palsy, or any birth injury, is very high. If your child’s brain injury was caused by a complication of premature birth, including cervical incompetence, contact The Yost Legal Group today at 1-800-YOST-LAW (800-403-7259). When you call, you will speak with an experienced Baltimore Medical Malpractice attorney absolutely FREE.

We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you will never pay an attorney’s fee up front, and you owe us nothing unless we win your case. The attorneys at Yost Legal Group are experienced, caring professionals ready to investigate your claim with compassion and determination. Call us today to receive a free, confidential consultation about your possible case. At The Yost Legal Group, there is no fee or expense unless you recover.

Vacuum Extraction And Subgaleal Hematoma

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Approximately 5% (1 in 20) of all deliveries in the United States are operative vaginal deliveries. An operative vaginal delivery refers to a physician’s use of either forceps or a vacuum device when a woman’s labor has stalled. Over time, the rate of operative vaginal delivery has been steadily decreasing. However, the number of vacuum-assisted deliveries has been increasing. It is vital that vacuum extraction is done correctly by a trained medical professional.

The vacuum-assisted vaginal delivery procedure involves placing a small round cup on the baby’s head, which attaches to a vacuum pump creating suction to provide traction to gently pull the baby out of the birth canal. If performed incorrectly, one of the most dangerous complications of a vacuum extraction delivery is called a subgaleal hematoma (SGH). This is a potentially fatal accumulation of blood beneath the scalp of the newborn which can be caused by too much suction and/or the wrong-sized suction cup damaging blood vessels beneath the baby’s scalp resulting in hemorrhage. This type of injury has been known to cause life-threatening blood loss, hypovolemic shock, permanent brain damage, neurological injuries and more specifically, cerebral palsy (CP).

The frequency of subgaleal hematomas after vacuum-assisted vaginal delivery ranges from 26 to 45 per 1000 deliveries. In the hands of an inexperienced or untrained physician, a vacuum-assisted delivery can cause you and your child serious and permanent injuries. The cost of care for a child with cerebral palsy, or any birth injury, is very high. If your child’s birth injury was caused by a complication during vacuum-assisted or forceps-assisted delivery, contact The Yost Legal Group today at 1-800-YOST-LAW (800-403-7259). When you call, you will speak with an experienced Baltimore Medical Malpractice attorney absolutely FREE.

We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you will never pay an attorney’s fee up front, and you owe us nothing unless we win your case. The attorneys at Yost Legal Group are experienced, caring professionals ready to investigate your claim with compassion and determination. Call us today to receive a free, confidential consultation about your possible case. At The Yost Legal Group, there is no fee or expense unless you recover.

Vacuum-Assisted Delivery And Birth Injury

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Sometimes, during the labor and delivery process, the baby needs a little help getting through the birth canal. Approximately 1 out of 20 vaginal deliveries in the United States result in some form of assistance being required. Prolonged labor can be dangerous to the baby as well as extremely painful and exhausting to the mother. Two common forms of assisted delivery, used by medical providers to when labor is stalled, are vacuum extraction and forceps delivery.

Vacuum extraction involves placing a small round cup on the baby’s head, which attaches to a vacuum pump creating suction to help guide the baby out of the birth canal. If performed incorrectly, suction during vacuum extraction can cause permanent and even life-threatening injuries, including: massive bleeding (hemorrhage and hypovolemic shock) beneath the scalp or within the brain (intracranial hemorrhage and encephalopathy); brain damage; skull fracture; and, retinal hemorrhage. Forceps delivery (another assisted delivery method), can also cause skull fractures, skull bleeding, and bruising on the baby’s head and face. These injuries have been known to cause permanent brain damage, neurological injuries and more specifically, cerebral palsy (CP).

In the hands of an inexperienced or untrained physician, a vacuum-assisted or forceps-assisted delivery can cause you and your child serious and permanent injuries. The cost of care for a child with cerebral palsy, or any birth injury, is very high. If your child’s birth injury was caused by a complication during vacuum-assisted or forceps-assisted delivery, contact The Yost Legal Group today at 1-800-YOST-LAW (800-403-7259). When you call, you will speak with an experienced Baltimore Medical Malpractice attorney absolutely FREE.

We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you will never pay an attorney’s fee up front, and you owe us nothing unless we win your case. The attorneys at Yost Legal Group are experienced, caring professionals ready to investigate your claim with compassion and determination. Call us today to receive a free, confidential consultation about your possible case. A The Yost Legal Group, there is no fee or expense unless you recover.

 

Paralysis Caused By Spinal Surgery

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An ideal outcome in spinal surgery is dependent of the coordination of efforts by the surgeon, anesthesiologist, and neurophysiologist. Because patients are under general anesthesia during surgery, techniques for examining the nervous system for potential injuries can be somewhat limited. Intraoperative spinal cord monitoring (IOM) allows the surgeon to record the electrical signals transferred along the spinal cord and use this recording to prevent neural irritation or spinal cord injury during surgery.

Electrodes are placed on the patient’s body to monitor and record nerve signal responses throughout the spinal surgical procedure. The most common forms of spinal cord monitoring during surgery are EMG (electromyography), SEP (somatosensory evoked potentials) and MEP (motor evoked potentials). Ideally, this is done in an efficient manner without interrupting the flow of the operation and producing unnecessary interruptions.

The monitoring personnel must be able to detect and understand the source of any variables in spinal cord signals in order to deal with them appropriately. An intra-operative disruption or complete loss of spinal cord electrical signals in the appropriate monitoring channels (either SEP sensors, MEP sensors, or both) is clearly an indication of significant disturbance of spinal cord function. If this is not recognized and sensation is not restored during the spinal surgery, severe spinal cord and/or spinal nerve root injury, up to and including partial or total paralysis, may occur.

If you or a loved one has suffered permanent neurological injury and/or paralysis due to a complication during spinal surgery, contact The Yost Legal Group today at 1-800-YOST-LAW (800-403-7259). When you call, you will speak with an experienced Baltimore Medical Malpractice attorney absolutely FREE.

The attorneys at Yost Legal Group are experienced, caring professionals ready to investigate your claim with compassion and determination. Call us today to receive a free, confidential consultation about your possible case. At The Yost Legal Group, there is no fee or expense unless you recover.

 

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