►February 27, 2004 - Couple take US Health Department to court over buying drugs abroad - Medical News Today

►February 23, 2004 - New Data Refute Link Between Medical Malpractice Lawsuits and OB/GYN Insurance Premium Hikes - www.commondreams.org 

►February 27, 2004 - Autism education case in court - The Record-Courier - "Saying there are 'kids that need serious help and never get it,' a Genoa couple is asking the Douglas County School District to implement a program that treats the needs of autistic children...Ranée and Sheldon Gaines expect a response March 8 from an independent hearing officer with the Nevada Department of Education. They will find out if they will be reimbursed $8,500 for autism treatment they paid for their 3-year-old twin sons, Jeremiah and Nehemiah."

►February 27, 2004 - Parents refused aid to fight MMR - Parents who claim their children were damaged by the MMR jab have lost their latest bid for legal aid to sue the manufacturers of the vaccine. - BBC - "Officials said that since there was no scientific proof that the children had been damaged by the vaccine, there was little chance it would succeed...The children involved in this case have a range of disabilities, including autism, bowel problems, epilepsy and other learning difficulties...Some parents are now considering taking their legal campaign to the Court of Appeal."

►February 27, 2004 - Funding Blow for MMR Battle Parents - PA News via The Scotsman

►February 28, 2004 - Vaccine parents vow to fight on - The Scotsman

►February 27, 2004 - MMR Campaigners Vow to Continue Compensation Fight - PA News via The Scotsman - "'Since this litigation will no longer be funded, and there is no sign that the Government or pharmaceutical companies are taking up the very serious questions that research in the litigation has posed, we as a law firm representing many grievously injured children will now have to consider whether we press the Government to properly investigate matters the drug companies have attempted to sweep under the carpet.'”

►February 23, 2004 - Johns Hopkins Settles in Toddler's Death (requires registration or subscription) - AP via The New York Times

►February 26, 2004 - Vaccine Program Remedies Must Be Exhausted Before Filing Suit - The Legal Intelligencer via www.law.com - "A couple whose son suffers from autism because of an alleged adverse reaction to thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative once present in vaccines for newborns, may not file suit in Pennsylvania against a group of pharmaceutical companies until they exhaust administrative remedies available through the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, the Pennsylvania Superior Court has ruled...According to the Superior Court opinion, the federal Vaccine Act of 1986 requires that before commencing any state or federal claims, vaccine claimants must first file a petition with the "no-fault" compensation program, a special tribunal of the Federal Court of Claims known as the Vaccine Court and located in Bethesda, Md."

►February 27, 2004 - Vaccination: Mother's anger at withdrawal of MMR jab legal aid - The mother of an autistic child today hit out at a decision to cut legal aid for families who are attempting to prove the MMR jab ruined their children's lives - The Peterborough Today, UK - "'To pull funding at a time when the evidence is quite clearly becoming extremely strong is absolutely outrageous...'It's the ultimate insult to deny that these children are ill and have got a problem and to deny them their day in court.'"

►February 27, 2004 - MMR scientist did not hide link with legal case, letter reveals - by Jeremy Laurence, Health Editor, The Independent, UK - "Andrew Wakefield, the researcher who sparked the MMR scare with a paper in The Lancet six years ago, did not cover up his links with the Legal Aid Board, it emerged yesterday...Dr Wakefield was accused at the weekend of failing to disclose the conflict of interest over his research at the Royal Free Hospital in London, suggesting a possible link between the MMR vaccination and bowel disease and autism, which has led tens of thousands of parents to boycott the triple vaccination...But he did reveal his links with the Legal Aid Board in a letter published in The Lancet on 2 May 1998, less than three months after his original research paper."

Comment:  "RFD Comment:  'The plot thickens...'" To read the rest of this comment and get the kind of insight into health issues only Nicholas Regush can provide, go to www.redflagsdaily.com (Much of the website now requires a subscription.)

►February 27, 2004 - Journalist takes MMR battle away from high court - MediaGuardian, UK - "A freelance journalist is hoping to use his upcoming legal action against medical journal the Lancet to move the debate about the controversial MMR jab from the high court to a county court in south London.,,Brian Deer said he was taking his claim for damages relating to a breach of confidentiality over his exclusive story on the man behind the claims that MMR may be linked to autism to Lambeth county court on Monday.

►February 23, 2004 - The blame drain - The Gulf War veterans are blaming their lawyer for the collapse of their case against the MoD. Jon Robins hears both sides of the story - www.thelawyer.com

►January 13, 2004 - Pa. courts asked to collect malpractice suit data - AP via Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - "The state Supreme Court's chief justice wants local court officials across the state to report the number of medical-malpractice claims filed in the past four years and monitor new cases as they come in...Doctors' groups have complained that skyrocketing insurance rates are forcing them to leave the state and have lobbied aggressively for reforms that would lessen their insurance burden."

Comment:  Why is it almost always assumed there is no good reason for these lawsuits?  Perhaps there is ample reason to be concerned about vaccines. For instance, perhaps the incidence of vaccine adverse reactions is far higher than what is admitted to by the "experts".  For more on the incidence of vaccine-associated adverse reactions go to Scandals: Avoidance Of Vaccine Truth But Not Consequences -  Are We "Knee Deep in the Big Muddy"?

And what of the statistical methods to analyze the data?  One commonly used tactic, using doses, as in the above example, skews the results whenever multi-dose vaccines are used.  For instance, in the above example cited in The Scientist, given that children receive 4-5 DOSES of DPT vaccine, severe allergic reactions would then be thought to occur in at least one in 200,000 to 250,000 CHILDREN.  If you factor in under-reporting, thought by even the FDA and at least one vaccine manufacturing company to be considerable, the numbers re: severe allergic reactions alone are not so reassuring and could be as frequent as 100/200,000 or 1 in 2,000 CHILDREN.  For more on this go to Scandals: Contemporary Legends - How To Lie With Statistics I