Several months ago, I wrote about the tragic death of Rory Staunton, a 12 year-old boy who died after doctors at a local hospital failed to recognize the early signs of sepsis, where the body has a severe response to a bacterial infection. Now, word comes from The New York Times that New York may become the first state to require hospitals to aggressively look for signs of sepsis in patients, so that treatment can be started as soon as possible.

2012 brought many highlights for the pop music fan, including the debut of a great new retro band, The Alabama Shakes, a screen biography of Bob Marley, the amazing story of singer-songwriter (Sixto) Rodriguez, as recounted in the wonderful film “Searching for Sugarman”,

A recent study by Johns Hopkins University, and reported by the Wall Street Journal, ABC News, Fox News and others, found that certain medical errors, known as “never events” are still occurring over 4,000 times per year.

The statute of limitations is the deadline by which someone must file a lawsuit or forever lose his or her right to sue. In New York, the time for an adult to sue for medical malpractice expires two years and six months after the malpractice took place. If the malpractice took place in a City-owned hospital, the deadline is only 15 months from the malpractice. By contrast, the statute of limitations for contract lawsuits is six years and for property damages is three years. To make matters much worse, sometimes the New York medical malpractice statute of limitations runs out before the victim even knows that she has been a victim of malpractice. In which case, the victim is out of luck.

Most responsible citizens purchase enough insurance to adequately protect potential accident victims and to give themselves peace of mind that their own assets will never be put into jeopardy as a result of an accident. Many, however, do not carry sufficient Uninsured Motorist coverage that would potentially protect themselves and their family in the event that one of them was injured by an uninsured, stolen or hit-and-run vehicle.