• Cell Phones or PDA devices with email and Texting

  It is common practice for businesses to equip their employees with a company cell phone so that clients or other employees can reach them when they are away from the office. It seems to make good business sense, and overall efficiency is increased, which is good news to any employer. Cell phones are now proven to be the majority of caused accidents.

• Pagers

  Although pagers might be viewed as less distracting to the user than cell phones, they still can create legal waves for a company

• Non-Designated Drivers

  Most companies painstakingly investigate and insure their on-the-job drivers, such as delivery people and truck drivers, but they usually overlook the small errands for which they sometimes send non-insured employees, such as office workers.

What can companies do to protect themselves?

• Set employee policies regarding employees not using the cell phone or PDA’s while driving.
• Provide cellular phones and pagers only for essential personnel.
• Before giving an employee an assignment that requires driving, make sure they have a valid driver’s license.
• Better yet, keep employees in their hired roles. If they were hired for office work, keep them there. Let the company drivers do the driving.

– Brad Arnett

Insuring a Home for its Real Estate Value Rather than the Cost of Rebuilding

With the value of real estate going down, some home buyers may think that they can reduce the amount of insurance on their home. Insurance,  however, is designed to cover the cost of rebuilding a home. It is not linked to the sale price of the home. Homeowners should be careful to purchase enough insurance coverage to completely rebuild their home and replace their belongings.

• A better Way To Save MoneyConsider higher deductibles. If you were to raise a $500 deductible to as much as $1,000, you may save up to 25 percent on many home insurance policies. The average person only files a claim every eight to 10 years, so most homeowners will save money over time.

Only Purchasing the Legally Required Amount of Liability Protection for a Car

Every state has financial responsibility laws for drivers requiring you to buy a minimum amount of liability coverage. However, if you buy only the minimum coverage, you may end up paying significantly more out-of-pocket in the long run.

• A better Way To Save MoneyBefore you buy a new or used car, check into insurance costs. Your premium is based in part on the car’s sticker price, the cost to repair it, its overall safety record and the likelihood of theft. Many insurers offer discounts for features that reduce the risk of injuries or theft like air bags, anti-lock brakes, daytime running lights and anti-theft devices.

- Bryce Arnett

On June 30, 2009 an advisory committee to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommended that the FDA restrict the use of acetaminophen, one of the most widely-used pain medications. Some of the more popular medications containing acetaminophen are over the counter drugs such as Tylenol, Excedrin and NyQuil as well as other prescription brand-name medications such as Vicodin, Percocet, Lortab, and Tylenol w/codeine.

If taken in the recommended doses, acetaminophen is a safe and effective fever reducing and pain medication, however, it is widely overused. The average healthy adult has the recommended maximum dose of acetaminophen over a 24 hour period of 4000 mg. Each extra-strength Tylenol pill currently contains 500 mg, and each regular strength pill contains 325 mg. Overdoses occur when individuals multi-medicate to treat various symptoms not knowing that acetaminophen is a common ingredient in each of the medications being taken. A common mistake occurs because it is often difficult to identify products containing acetaminophen as it is often labeled as APAP on pharmacy containers. Another common overuse of acetaminophen is the PM version of Tylenol. Many individuals take Tylenol PM on a regular basis to medicate for sleep deprivation or insomnia. This combined with daily pain medications often result in accidental overdose.

Acetaminophen overdose causes severe liver damage and have been linked to 56,000 emergency room visits, 26,000 hospitalizations, and 458 deaths during the 1990’s according to the FDA. The agency cited another study, a 2007 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention population-based report, that estimated acetaminophen was the likely cause of most of the estimated 1,600 acute liver failures each year.

The FDA isn’t trying to eliminate the use of acetaminophen, but has suggested restrictions on its use that will reduce the recommended dosages and eliminate some popular prescription products that contain acetaminophen such as Vicodin and Percocet.

We recommend that you become familiar with the manufacturers dosage recommendations and adhere to all warning labels and guidelines in order to avoid accidental acetaminophen overdose.
References: FDA, “Joint Meeting of the Drug and Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee with the Anesthetic and Life Support Drugs Advisory Committee and the Nonprescription Drugs Advisory Committee Meeting Announcement,” June 29-30, 2009. Source.

– Stephanie O’Dell