Health Law

Arizona E. coli outbreak litigation

By Drew Falkenstein

It seems like we're in Arizona a lot litigating E. coli outbreak cases.  Currently, we represent numerous people from several states in the E. coli O157:H7 outbreak linked to Costco and Bravo Farms gouda cheese, including 3 Arizona residents on whose behalf we've sued the cheesemaker.  Not a bad place to litigate in the winter months when you're from Seattle.

Here are a few other multi-state E. coli outbreaks that sickened, some very severely, a bunch of Arizona residents:

1. Nestle E. coli O157:H7 outbreak linked to raw cookie dough (2009)
2. United Food Group E. coli O157:H7 outbreak linked to ground beef (2007)
3. Dole baby spinach E. coli O157:H7 outbreak (2006)
4. Arizona petting zoo E. coli O157:H7 outbreak (2005)

The CDC's latest report states that there are 19 Arizona residents sickened in the E. coli O157:H7 outbreak linked to Costco and Bravo Farms gouda cheese. 

Not all of our clients, past and present, suffered life-altering injuries.  But some did.  In the 2007 Arizona E. coli outbreak linked to United Food Group ground beef, 3 young kids developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, or HUS).  One of our clients was Rebecca Gosla, a 10 year old girl who suffered a devastating illness.  Rebecca's illness stands apart from most E. coli O157:H7 infections, even for children who develop hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). She was hospitalized for over a month, suffered weeks of dialysis, and her medical bills were nearly $200,000.

The severity and duration of her HUS-related complications, including the complete failure of kidney function as indicated by the lack of urine-production, makes Rebecca's prognosis concerning. It is possible that her kidney-function will decline over time to a point that kidney transplantation or maintenance-dialysis will be necessary for her survival.

Full post as published by Food Poison Blog on November 16, 2010 (boomark / email).