InjuryBoard Bangor & Augusta Archives

• Maine Senate gives green light to Ignition Interlock in hopes of controlling drunk drivers

  Don Briggs | March 30, 2008 2:40 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Automobile Accidents

  On March 27th, the Maine Senate gave full approval to the implementation of an Ignition Interlock program which would install breath analysis devices in the vehicles of convicted OUI offenders. The devices require drivers to breath into a miniature breathalyzer installed on the dashboard, and, if the driver's blood alcohol percentage is above the programmed limit (usually .02% -.04%), the...

• Maine Car Crash Leads To Second Accident

  Anne Fennessey | March 28, 2008 9:46 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Automobile Accidents

  It happens alot. There's an accident on the highway. Rescue vehicles rush to the scene with sirens blaring and lights flashing. Other drivers on the road move out of the way and let the rescue vehicles make their way to the crash. That's the way it should be, but on Wednesday, March 26, 2008, things didn't exactly work out the way they should have following an accident on I-95 North in...

• Youth suicide prompts the FDA to investigate asthma drug Singulair and possible link to severe mood changes

  Don Briggs | March 27, 2008 11:28 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Defective & Dangerous Products

  Cody Miller was fifteen years old when he unexpectedly ended his own life on August 4th of 2007, just two weeks after starting on the popular allergy drug, Singulair, for his allergies. MSNBC reported today that Merck, the company that sells Singulair, has changed the drug's labeling four times in the past year to include information on a range of side effects such as tremors, anxiousness,...

• Security Breach at Hannaford Supermarkets Results in Massive Credit and Debit Card Fraud

  Don Briggs | March 20, 2008 11:13 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Defective & Dangerous Products

  On February 27th, Hannaford Supermarkets became aware of a major security breach which lead to credit and debit card fraud for more than 1,800 shoppers and but another 4 million at risk. An article in the Bangor Daily News Reports that the security breach affected all of the 165 stores in the Northeast and 102 Speedbay stores in Florida. Investigators later determined that, although Hannaford...

• Drunk Drivers, Suspended Licenses, and Fatal Crashes: Does Maine Need the Ignition Interlock System?

  Don Briggs | March 19, 2008 9:23 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Automobile Accidents

  Every ten hours, a driver with a suspended license gets into a crash in Maine. That's according to a recent article from the Kennebec Journal Morning Sentinel. More concerning, still, is that one quarter of these drivers has been drinking or using drugs before the crash.This comprehensive report offers a detailed analysis of the problem and reveals that, not only are suspended drivers getting...

• Dangerous Drivers and Suspended Licenses: Who Will Keep Them Off Maine's Roads?

  Don Briggs | March 17, 2008 1:02 AM | 0 Comments
  Category: Automobile Accidents

  A recent article published in the Portland Press Herald reports that, every day, thousands of Mainers get behind the wheel with suspended licenses, but according to court records, law enforcement catches about only about a dozen of them. The chances of getting caught are slim unless the driver is pulled over for some other reason, and many people simply decide it's worth the risk. For others,...

• Why Maine Jurors Should Be Mad

  Alison Mynick, RN, Esq. | March 09, 2008 11:16 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Automobile Accidents

  Here is a typical example of how insurance companies, and their corporate defense counsel, take advantage of ordinary Maine citizens: "Driver A" is sitting in her car. The car is stopped in traffic and she is waiting to turn left. She has her blinker on. She has seatbelt on. Driver A is playing by the rules. Up from behind her in traffic comes another driver, "Driver B". This driver is...

• Maine Doctors: Would They Rat On Their Own Patients?

  Alison Mynick, RN, Esq. | March 03, 2008 9:09 PM | 0 Comments
  Category: Miscellaneous

  Once again the question arises: Could this happen in Maine?Blue Cross of California tried to have California doctors finger their own patients so that Blue Cross could deny insurance coverage based on a patient's medical condition. Since insurance company executives aren't allowed into the exam room with patients (yet), Blue Cross of California thought it might be OK to ask California doctors...