Truvada Medication May Be Causing Kidney Failure and Bone Injuries

Truvada is an antiretroviral drug that that is prescribed for patients that have have a high risk of developing HIV.  The medication does not cure HIV or AIDS. It was intended to help improve the patients’ quality of life.  

Many persons have been harmed by Truvada by suffering from broken bones and/or kidney failure while taking the medication.  

Gilead Sciences, Inc., is the maker of Truvada and the company is now being sued by hundreds of people suffering from the side effects of taking the medication.  It has been reported that Gilead knew since the year 2000 that there was a safer alternative drug that they could have marketed called TAF. Despite early indicators that TAF offered a safer alternative, Gilead officials chose not to pursue development of the drug; critics say the company held the drug until it was strategically advantageous to release it.  By delaying the development of the TAF by a decade, Gilead extended its patent and market dominance until 2032.

If you or a loved one suffered from osteoporosis, brittle or broken bones, or kidney failure by taking Truvada, please call the experts at Inserra Kelley Sewell to see whether you might be entitled to compensation. 

Zantac Heartburn Medication Contains Cancer Carcinogens

On September 30, 2019, the FDA announced that ranitidine (Zantac), a heartburn medication used by millions of Americans, may cause cancer.  Zantac has been found to contain a carcinogenic chemical 26,000 times the FDA-approved limit.  When one 150 mg tablet is ingested, it undergoes a chemical reaction in the stomach to create more than 3,100 times the FDA-approved limit of N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), a chemical which the FDA, EPA and World Health Organization classify as a dangerous carcinogen.

A newly filed class-action lawsuit accuses Sanofi, the maker of Zantac, of intentionally concealing risks of taking the medication to avoid sales and profit losses.  Zantac was first sold in starting in1983, and three years later it became the first drug to total $1 billion in annual sales. The Plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit are from all over the United States, and many of them took Zantac daily for years.

On October 1, 2019, Walgreens and CVS Pharmacies suspended sales of Zantac and removed the product from their store shelves.

INSERRA l KELLEY l SEWELL wants you and yours to know that if you are taking Zantac, please consult with your physician to find out if you should immediately start taking an alternative medication.

If you or a loved one suffered from severe side effects or cancer from Zantac, please call the great mass tort Team at Inserra Kelley Sewell to see whether you might be entitled to compensation. 

E-cigarettes, Vaping and Juuls Are Causing Addiction, Sickness and Death

Electronic cigarettes include “vapes”, hookah pens, or Juuls.  They are battery powered devices that heat an e-liquid sometimes called “e-juice” that contains nicotine.  One Juul pod contains as much nicotine as entire pack of cigarettes. The aerosol cloud produced by a JUUL may not look as thick as cigarette smoke, but it still contains harmful chemicals.  The aerosol inhaled from e-cigarettes may contain nicotine, formaldehyde and acrolein 

All brands of E-cigarettes are marketed to entice our teens and young adults to start this deadly habit with teen-enticing flavors such as mango, mint, cotton candy, gummy bear and cherry crush.  E-cigarettes are small and easy to hide, and they look like a sleek USB flash drive.  

In recent weeks, there has been reports about people ending up in the hospital with lung issues, seizures and other health concerns after vaping.  There have been six confirmed deaths connected to vaping across the United States in California, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota and Oregon. 

People with a history of vaping who experience lung injury symptoms should seek medical care.  Symptoms include shortness of breath, fever, cough, vomiting and diarrhea.

If you or a loved one suffered illness from any kind of vaping device, please call the experts at Inserra Kelley Sewell to see whether you might be entitled to compensation. 

Ford Knew Focus, Fiesta Models Had Faulty Transmissions, Sold Them Anyway

Ford knew they had problems with the dual-clutch transmission in their 2012-present Focus and 2010-present Fiesta sold in the past decade.  Ford was warned by engineers and lawyers to recall these vehicles and not sell anymore of them to the public due to potentially dangerous problems that have led to many reported injuries.

The gear boxes have many problems like sudden acceleration, sputtering and slipping into neutral at highway speeds.  Ford kept trying to find an inexpensive fix for the faulty transmissions in the Focus and Fiesta models for the past five years while complaints and costs piled up.  A South Carolina Man reported in 2017 that his 2011 Fiesta hesitated when the accelerator was pushed, leading to a collision that caused burns and a neck injury for his daughter.  A 2012 Fiesta owner in Florida said that in 2014 “while turning into a parking space at low speed, the car lurched forward, slamming into a brick wall…Major front-end damage totaling $6,127 in repairs and over $16,000 in hospital costs to myself.”  Hundreds of drivers reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that they feared for their lives as their cars sped up, stalled rolled backward or shook violently, often after having multiple repairs done at Ford dealerships.

Currently, Ford now faces a potential $4 billion in liability instead of a $35 million settlement negotiated in April of 2019 to resolve a class action lawsuit in Pasadena, California.

If you or a loved one have suffered injuries from driving a Ford Focus or Fiesta please call the experts at Inserra Kelley Sewell to see whether you might be entitled to compensation. 

Owner of Ragu Recalls Pasta Sauce That May Contain Plastic Fragments

Ragu is owned by Mikzan Holdings a Japanese Company that took ownership of the company in 2014. The owner of the company is recalling some of the styles of sauces as a precautionary measure as there may be plastic fragments in them.

The recall has been launched voluntarily and the products that may have been affected by are:

  • Chunky Tomato, Garlic and Onion Sauce with a June 6, 2020, best used by date;
  • Old World Style Traditional Sauce with a June 4, 2020, best used by date;
  • Old World Style Meat Sauce with a June 5, 2020, best used by date.

Consumers that have purchased these products are urged not to consume them and either discard the sauce or return it to the store for a refund.

Customers can also contact Mizkan America, based in Illinois for a replacement coupon and/or have any product they purchased picked up for further examination. Mizkan America’s customer service hotline is 800-328-7248.

190,757 Pounds of Tyson Foods Chicken Products Recalled in Nebraska and Other States

Tyson Foods is recalling 190,757 ready-to-eat chicken fritters as some may contain hard plastic, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Safety Inspection Service (FSIS).

Health officials received consumer complaints from schools of a foreign material in the breaded chicken product.  

The 32.81-pound cases containing four 8.2-pound bags of fully cooked, whole grain golden crispy chicken chunk fritters were produced on February 28, 2019 and the case code on the bags are 0599NHL02.  The recalled chicken product was not sold for retail.

A major concern for FSIS is that some product may still be in food service freezers.  Food service providers that have purchased these products should throw them away or return them to the place of purchase.

Anyone that has eaten the product and is concerned about injury or illness should contact a health care provider.

If you or a loved one suffered from side effects from Tyson ready-to-eat chicken fritters, please call the experts at Inserra Kelley Sewell to see whether you might be entitled to compensation.  

56 tons of ground beef recalled in Nebraska and other states in E. coli outbreak

At least 156 people in 10 states have been infected with E. coli after eating tainted ground beef at home and in restaurants.  

Of the people infected so far, twenty have been hospitalized.  The beef from K2D Foods, working under the name Colorado Premium foods has been recalled.  Unopened, intact ground beef from a restaurant tested positive for E. coli. The beef had been inspected by the USDA.  

It may take 2-3 weeks to test positive for E. coli.  Early symptoms of E. coli infection are: nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, diarrhea, fever, malaise, loss of appetite and dehydration.  Long term effects include high blood pressure and kidney failure.

If you or a loved one suffered from side effects from E. coli from tainted ground beef, please call the experts at Inserra Kelley Sewell to see whether you might be entitled to compensation.  

Opioid Drugs are killing over 70,200 people a year

Opioids are a class of analgesic drugs that are generally prescribed to patients that have suffered catastrophic injuries.  Opioids suppress the central nervous system and reduce feelings of pain. Opioids are highly addictive, and patients can overdose on the medication that can lead to death.

Opioids that are available in the United States are:

  • Abstral and Duragesic (Fentanlyl)
  • Butrans and Belbuca (Buprenophine)
  • Demerol (Morphine)
  • Duramorph (Morphine)
  • Methadoes and Dolophine (Methadone)
  • OxyContin and Percocet (Oxycodone)
  • Vicodin (Hydrocodone)

The risks of taking any of the above opioids are addiction, respiratory depression, heart complications and/or overdose and death.

In 2008 I was prescribed Hydrocodone after my wisdom teeth were extracted.  I did not want to take the medication as I had heard it was highly addictive.  I was in horrible pain and had to take Hydrocodone for a week. I will tell you the drug made me feel extremely happy and every pain in my body was gone.  I nicknamed the medication my happy pill. When the drug wore off I was back to my normal self with regular emotions and the body aches and pains that come with aging.

In 2017 my husband had serious medical crisis and he had to be hospitalized for a week in the ICU.  The team of doctors could not figure out was wrong with him and they had given him painkillers and morphine.  The good news is that he lived, and he did not get addicted to any of the prescribed medication. I asked him what he felt like when they injected him with morphine and he said he had absolutely no pain at all and the drug made him blissfully happy.

For those families who have lost loved ones to deadly side effects of opioids there are avenues of relief which are holding the negligent drug manufacturers accountable and seeking compensation for medical bills, lost earnings, and pain and suffering.

If you or a loved one suffered or have been hurt from any kind of prescription opioid drug, please call the experts at Inserra Kelley Sewell to see whether you might be entitled to compensation.  

 

Is the shingles vaccine safe?

Merck & Co. are battling lawsuits that involve their Zostavax shingles vaccine that allegedly caused blindness, paralysis, brain damage, liver failure, and even death.

Shingles are most common in adults over 50 years of age.  You must have previously had the chickenpox to contract shingles.  

The Zostavax lawsuits allege that Merck & Co. became aware that the vaccine could cause patients to contract the shingles during its premarket approval trials and did not list the possible side effect until December of 2014, seven years after the FDA approved it.

The National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program allows patients to recover millions for the harm they suffered.  There are no specific types of injuries that must be sustained in order to entitle a petitioner to compensation, however, the person bust have had side effects from the vaccine that lasted 6 months or more, resulted in a hospital stay or, resulted in death.

Currently, there more than 50 lawsuits in the United States against Merck & Co. for the Zostavax shingles vaccine.  We believe there are many more potential patients that have been affected by the vaccine.

If you or a loved one suffered from side effects from Merck & Co.’s Zostavax shingles vaccine, please call the experts at Inserra Kelley Sewell to see whether you might be entitled to compensation.  

What You Need to Do After a Bike Crash in Nebraska

What You Need to Do After a Bike Crash in Nebraska
BIKE CRASHES HAPPEN. HERE’S A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO CHECK YOURSELF AND YOUR BIKE BEFORE RIDING ON.


As regular bike riders, we know that if you ride, at some point you’re going to have a bike crash or be witness to a bike crash. Knowing this, it’s best to be prepared.

The first thing you want to do after a crash is avoid scrambling to your feet. Before you get off the ground, take a quick self-inventory and make sure you don’t have any major injuries. Assuming all of your parts are where they should be, for instance, all of your limbs attached and intact, move quickly to a safe spot off the road or out of the way of other riders and continue assessing.

Bicycling in Nebraska Crash Checklist Read more