Hardesty, Tyde, Green & Ashton, P.A. blog

We often hear from the insurance industry about the "bad apple" employee that has been fraudulent in her workers compensation claim. By all statistical accounts the percentage of fraud committed by injured workers is in the low single digits. However, the fraudulent activity of some employers is rampant and has devastating effects on the individuals injured in workplace accidents.
A measure of justice was served yesterday when three CEO's, Donald Edward Touchet, Richard E. Standridge and Robert J. Jennings were sentenced to federal prison for a combined 55 years and forfeitures exceeding $75 Million. Federal prosecutor Mark B. Devereaux methodically put together this extremely complicated case that affected over a million injured working people. Amazingly, there is more to be done as Devereaux is tirelessly working to track down another defendant who fled to Europe.
If you are the victim of employer fraud or observe your employer committing fraud contact an attorney familiar with this type of claim immediately. To read more about this case of employer workers compensation fraud see this link:

http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/053008/met_284352016.shtml

As published in Folioweekly
Northeast Florida's News & Opinion Magazine

Bouquets to Jacksonville attorney and Planning Commission member Marc Hardesty for consistently standing up for communities caught in zoning conflicts. Hardesty proved a staunch ally for Arlington residents during their fight to prevent JAA from expanding Craig Airport, and most recently sided with residents of the Alta Drive area who opposed industrial JaxPort truck traffic being sent down their street. Hardesty called on lawmakers to more aggressively plan for the thousands of additional daily semi trailers expected to turn the roads around the port into a "chokepoint."

The owners of large trucking companies are proposing that larger and heavier commercial trucks be allowed to travel interstate highways. The proposed increase in gross vehicle weight would increase from 80,000 pounds to 97,000 pounds. The proposal has been made primarily by the shipping industry using the excuse that this would save fuel and be "Greener" for the environment. Interestingly, the industry cannot substantiate this claim since the same tractors would be hauling an additional 17,000 pounds. The engines are simply not designed for this increased load and certainly the braking systems are not sufficient for this increased load. Additionally, the suspension systems of most trailers are not adequate for this stress. The result is a deadly combination that will dramatically impact the safety for all of us on our nations highways.

To learn more visit this site:

http://www.trucksafety.org/docs/Final%20Press%20Release%20for%20Truck%20Safety%20Press%20Conference.doc

The following editorial was published on May 6, 2008 in the Daytona Beach News Journal and on May 7, 2008 in the Florida Times Union. Marc Hardesty on the Legal Board of the St. Johns Riverkeeper and is a Commissioner on the Jacksonville (Duval County) Planning Commission.

The water withdrawal scheme concocted by the St. Johns River Water Management District and Seminole County defies logic and scientific facts. In fact, their position simply does not hold water.

Interestingly, in a May 1 article titled "Florida fights Georgia water plan," it was reported that Florida is opposing Georgia's water withdrawal due to the adverse effect already seen in Apalachicola Bay.

The result of last year's Georgia experiment was increased salinity levels, which resulted in oyster kills throughout the bay.

This is precisely the same issue presented if millions of gallons of fresh water are taken out of the St. Johns River and piped to the uncontrollable and mismanaged growth of Seminole County.

I encourage Kirby Green, the executive director of the management district, to do a third-grade science experiment and see for himself.

Take a glass of water and take a sip. Now, add two spoons of salt (I bet the salt sinks because it is heavier) and mix it up (tidal action). Does it taste different?

The point is that simple. As freshwater flow is reduced at a rate of up to 262 million gallons a day, the incoming tidal action brings heavier salt water up river, increasing the salinity level. It harms the estuaries throughout St. Johns River system and the Timucuan preserve.

The delicate balance of survivability is skewed, causing the marine plants and fixed marine organisms, such as oysters, to die, while causing loss of habitat for many crustaceans, fin fish, sea birds, coastal mammals and marine reptiles.

While Michael Sole, state secretary for the Department of Environmental Protection, addressed the "potentially disastrous" effect of the Georgia water withdrawal scheme in Apalachicola, the St. Johns River Water Management District chooses to continue rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

Meanwhile, Sole warned of the higher salinity levels causing destruction.

He stated, "If the water withdrawal is implemented, it would starve the Apalachicola River and Apalachicola Bay of freshwater flows needed to sustain those ecosystems, and the species and economies dependent on them."

Maybe Sole can show the management district how to do that third-grade science experiment.

Additionally, the pumping station proposed at Yankee Lake to undertake the river depletion will cost many millions of taxpayer dollars.

But, that will pale in comparison to the millions we will spend in a failed attempt to correct this folly in the future.

We are seeing the facts unfold in the Panhandle of Florida.

Shouldn't we learn from that disaster and say no to this scheme before it is too late and too expensive?

W. MARC HARDESTY,

attorney,

Jacksonville

Labels: District's bucket of facts is leaky

A study of over 41 million Medicare funded hospitalizations between 2004 and 2006 just released by an independent health care rating company, HealthGrades, reveals the prevalence and staggering cost of hospital medical errors. The study revealed more than 1.1 million preventable medical errors occurred, resulting in 238,337 preventable deaths. The cost of these errors to taxpayers was just over 8.8 billion dollars. These numbers reflect only medical errors/costs associated with hospital care paid for by Medicare. They do not include any figures for hospital care paid for by private health insurance companies because much of this information is not publicly available. You can be sure that the numbers reported, high as they are, would be dramatically higher if information from private insurers was made available for analysis.

This study further confirms the significant risks associated with hospitalization in this country. Medicare has already indicated that, beginning in October 2008, it will no longer pay for injuries/infections attributable to certain preventable medical errors. See our blog of February 19, 2008 for more information. For steps you can take to help prevent medical errors, check the medical negligence heading on our website.