$425M Heartburn Drug Settlement; 5 Years for Clinic Fire; $2.5M Broken Leg Award

AstraZeneca will pay $425 million to settle lawsuits alleging that patients suffered kidney injuries while using its heartburn drugs esomeprazole (Nexium) and omeprazole (Prilosec). (The Hill)

A 22-year-old woman was sentenced to 5 years in prison for setting fire to a Wyoming clinic that was under construction but planned to offer gender-affirming care and abortions, according to federal prosecutors.

Pennsylvania physician Vladimir Iakomi, MD, was charged with indecent assault after allegedly touching a patient inappropriately during an office visit. (Penn Live)

New York emergency nurse Erik Hjemdahl-Monsen was arrested and charged with possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material. (The Buffalo News)

Ohio nurse Brian Trissel has been accused of secretly filming his girlfriend’s preteen daughter. (Columbus Dispatch)

A couple accused by patients of giving false diagnoses of Alzheimer’s disease received prison time. Sherry-Ann Jenkins, PhD, was sentenced to almost 6 years in prison and her husband Oliver Jenkins, MD, got 41 months. (Columbus Dispatch)

Heather Pressdee, the Pennsylvania nurse charged with killing two nursing home patients with insulin, now faces a wrongful death lawsuit from a third alleged victim. (Trib Live)

A jury awarded $2.5 million to a Connecticut man who said he was disabled for life after developing compartment syndrome following surgery for his broken leg. (CT Post)

The Center for Science in the Public Interest announced that it has sued EpicGenetics, charging that it has made false and misleading claims about its test for fibromyalgia.

A New Jersey appeals court has tossed a nearly $224 million verdict against Johnson & Johnson that was awarded to four plaintiffs who claimed they developed cancer from asbestos in the company’s talc powder products. (Reuters)

Cigna will pay over $172 million to resolve claims that it submitted incorrect data on its Medicare Advantage patients to CMS in order to receive higher payments, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Charges against California physician Anthony Hao Dinh, DO, have been expanded, increasing the total amount of fraudulent claims to more than a quarter-billion dollars, and adding money laundering charges, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.

South Carolina doctor Moustafa Moustafa, MD, and his medical practice South Carolina Hypertension Center, will pay over $585,000 to settle claims that they received illegal kickbacks in return for referring patients for lab testing, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

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