| Romney Calls For Caps On Noneconomic, Punitive Damages In Medical ...
Presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R) on Tuesday in Iowa called for caps on noneconomic and punitive damages in medical malpractice lawsuits, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports. During a speech at Des Moines University, Romney said, "I believe we have to enact federal caps on noneconomic and punitive damages related to malpractice," adding, "These lottery-sized awards and frivolous lawsuits may enrich the trial lawyers, but they put a heavy burden on doctors, hospitals and, of course through defensive medicine, they put a burden on the entire health care system." Romney said that as president he would encourage states to establish health courts overseen by judges who have experience in malpractice lawsuits and to sanction attorneys who repeatedly file frivolous claims (Pitt, AP/Houston Chronicle, 11/20).
Survey: Homebuilders to face 'greatest financial difficulty'
The housing industry and mortgage lenders top the list of most distressed industries for 2008, according to turnaround professionals. That sector replaces the automotive industry, which earned the dubious distinction last year. Sixty-two percent of respondents to the Turnaround Management Association's annual Trend Watch Poll said homebuilders will face the "greatest financial and/or operational difficulties" next year. With fewer homes being sold and rising foreclosures, businesses that lend to homebuyers will also likely take a hit. More than a third of professionals polled said that mortgage lenders will incur the most distress, while 32 percent said residential loan origination and servicing firms will be affected. For industries likely to face a serious trouncing, respondents placed the blame more on balance sheets than boardrooms.
Local business news in brief: KC Life ratings lowered
Standard & Poor's Rating Services lowered its counterparty and financial strength ratings on Kansas City Life Insurance Co. to A from A+. The rating service also lowered the comparable ratings of the company's Old American Insurance Co. subsidiary to A- from A. The service cited the companies' declining competitive position and modestly increasing risk profile in its decision. Analysts at A.M. Best Co. last month reaffirmed their A and B++ ratings for the firm and its subsidiaries. Earlier YRC earnings YRC Worldwide Inc. will release its financial results for the fourth quarter and all of 2007 on Monday, three days earlier than expected. The Overland Park trucking giant said the financial report will coincide with a meeting of analysts Monday.
Obama Wins South Carolina Primary
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below. COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Barack Obama routed Hillary Rodham Clinton in the racially charged South Carolina primary Saturday night, regaining campaign momentum in the prelude to a Feb. 5 coast-to-coast competition for more than 1,600 Democratic National Convention delegates. Former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina was running third, a sharp setback in the state where he was born and scored a primary victory in his first presidential campaign four years ago. About half the voters were black, according to polling place interviews, and four out of five of them supported Obama. Black women turned out in particularly large numbers. Obama, the first-term Illinois senator, got a quarter of the white vote while Clinton and Edwards split the rest.
Doc Under Microscope, as Kanye's Mom Undergoes Autopsy
Kanye West is in mourning, his mother's death remains shrouded in mystery and the doctor who performed her seemingly ill-fated cosmetic surgery is facing intense scrutiny. Los Angeles coroner's officials completed the autospy of Donda West early Tuesday afternoon, attempting to discern whether the 58-year-old former professor did indeed die of complications from surgery. West had a procedure on Friday and was sent home, rather than to a recovery center. By Saturday evening, she was in cardiac arrest, and despite the efforts of paramedics and emergency room staffers, she was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at a hospital. The autopsy results won't be released for four to six weeks, allowing time for all the toxicology test to come back. One Beverly Hills plastic surgeon released a statement Monday saying he turned down West's request for surgery due to an undisclosed preexisting condition.
Doctor in Putnam County malpractice cases to file for bankruptcy
John King, the former West Virginia doctor facing 122 medical malpractice cases, is apparently planning to file for bankruptcy, which could mean lengthy delays for the lawsuits against him. King filed a petition Wednesday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Northern Alabama, according to court records. He has 15 days from the filing of the petition to file a formal bankruptcy request, which would list all his personal assets and liabilities. That could delay the lawsuits against King — the first of which was scheduled to begin its trial phase on Dec. 3. Putnam County Judge O.C. Spaulding, who set the trial date, said last week that federal law would require him to immediately stop all legal proceedings if King files for bankruptcy.
Will 'Amnesty' Sink McCain?
The perennial controversy over what to call McCain's amnesty is silly. Every program in the world that has allowed illegal immigrants to stay has been called an "amnesty." McCain himself called it "amnesty" as recently as May 2003, when he told the Tucson Citizen "I think we can set up a program where amnesty is extended to a certain number of people who are eligible … Amnesty has to be an important part ..." But once the focus-group results were in, "amnesty" became a four-letter word. ...[snip] Real Straight Talk would be to say "Sure, it's an amnesty, but we don't really have any choice" ... P.S.: The McCain, post-focus-group argument is that it can't be "amnesty" if it has some requirements--e.g., to pay a fine, learn English, etc. But it turns out that Ronald Reagan's 1986 "comprehensive" reform, which he and everyone else called an "amnesty," had requirements too, including payment of fees.
Madeleine is more than a news story, she symbolises the dangers all ...
I hope that from now on we ordinary members of the public get exposed to the amount of children that go missing each year. As a mum of 2 small girls I would not become bored or ' switched off' when hearing about any other cases like poor Madeleine. Without this type of publicity we would all go around being grateful that it isn't happening in our backyard and therefore ignoring it. It needs to be highlighted as the real problem that it is and then perhaps we apathetic bunch may start to use our democratic voice to get something changed in the way that we deal with these evil animals. The media hype around Madeleine has certainly raised my awareness of what happens in the real world and I think that we owe it to her and the thousands of others suffering to start to get changes made. .
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