Community Health Systems hacked, affecting many in NEPA

Hackers broke into Community Health Systems, stole data on 4.5 million patients

Community Health Systems, the owner of Moses Taylor and Regional Hospitals in Scranton, Wilkes-Barre General, Tyler Memorial near Tunkhannock and First Hospital in Kingston, announced Monday that it was the target of a cyber attack.

Community Health Systems operates 206 hospitals across the country, including those mentioned locally. The company said that hackers broke into its computers and stole data on 4.5 million patients. According to reports on Fox News, they believe the attack originated in China.

CNN reported that the hackers gained access to names, social security numbers, addresses, birth dates and phone numbers, which is considered a breach under HIPPA. Anyone who received treatment from a physician’s office tied to a network-owned hospital in the last five years, or was merely referred by an outside doctor may be affected. […]

Kids and pets left in hot cars can have tragic ending

Leaving a child unattended in a vehicle on a hot summer day can lead to heatstroke and can kill in minutes. The Department of Earth & Climate Sciences at San Francisco State University reported that there have already been 21 child deaths this year due to heatstroke from being left in a hot vehicle.

Tragedy can strike when parents or caregivers forget or knowingly leave children or pets in hot vehicles. It can also occur when unattended children play in parked vehicles. A car can heat 20 degrees in just ten minutes. Even with temps in the 60s, the interior of a car can eventually heat up above 110 degrees. A child will die of heatstroke when their body temperature reaches 107 degrees, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

The issue of child heatstroke deaths reached national attention in June when a father in Atlanta said he forgot his son in the car seat while he was at work all day. […]

Summer boaters are encouraged to be safe and responsible

Recreational boating activity soars in the summer months, and so do boating accidents. In 2013, the U.S. Coast Guard counted 4,062 accidents that resulted in 560 deaths, 2,620 injuries, and approximately $39 million dollars of damage to property as a result of recreational boating accidents.

In a 2013 Recreational Boating Statistics report released by the Coast Guard, it was found that where the cause of death was known in boating accidents, 77% was a result of drowning. Of those drowning victims, 84% were not wearing a life jacket. The report also found that eight out of every ten boaters who drowned were using vessels less than 21 feet in length. 46% were open motorboats, 18% personal watercraft, and 17% cabin motorboats. Canoes, kayaks and pontoon boats also accounted for many accidents.

Alcohol use was the leading known contributing factor in recreational boating accidents where the primary cause was known. […]

PA personal injury lawyer warns of ATV danger

Six-time Olympic gold medalist swimmer, Amy Van Dyken-Rouen, was injured last week when she hit a curb while riding an all-terrain vehicle in her home state of Arizona, flying off of a drop-off of over 5 feet, according to police reports. She severed her spinal cord in the accident that left her hospitalized. A letter from her family said that the broken vertebrae came within millimeters of rupturing her aorta.

This is just a reinforcement of the dangers posed by ATVs, especially for children. According to the website ATVSafety.gov, there are more than 100,000 ATV-related emergency room visits and 700 deaths each year. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission 2012 Annual Report of ATV-Related Deaths and Injuries, which was released in April of this year, there were an estimated 12,400 ATV-related fatalities between 1982 and 2012. Of those fatalities, 2,944 were children younger than 16 years of age. […]

Growing pressure on NFL to address brain injuries

Football is a dangerous game when it comes to head injuries, both in the NFL and also on youth football fields. A 2010 study by Purdue University found that linemen, tight ends, running backs and linebackers suffer the must frequent head injuries. It’s no wonder why many of the highest profile NFL victims of traumatic brain injury, such as Junior Seau and Tony Dorsett, were linemen, linebackers or running backs.

More than 5,000 ex-players have filed a lawsuit against the NFL in federal court. In the lawsuit, the former players have alleged that NFL officials hid the dangers of repeated hits to the head while mythologizing the violence of their sport. The NFL reached an agreement for a $765 million settlement with the players, but the deal was rejected by Judge Anita Brody because she fears the sum is too low to adequately cover current and future retired player who may need long-term care. […]