This is my first personal commentary for the Law Offices of Stephen M. Frailich. My name is Reena B. Frailich and I am an attorney working with Mr. Frailich. Contrary to popular belief I am not Mr. Frailich’s wife but his cousin, in case you were curious.
This year, 2008, is an extremely exciting year for the Dow Corning Class Action. In 2008 there has been a significant amount of our clients settling their disease claims for Option 1, Atypical Connective Tissue Disease (ACTD). That of course is the good news. The bad news is that the Claims Board is still not current with their review of Option 2 claims. There is approximately a three year wait time before an Option 2 disease claim for General Connective Tissue Symptoms (GCTS) claim is reviewed.
Even though there is progress there are also frustrations with this class action.
Frustration # 1: There is a Long Wait Time for Option 2 Disease Claims.
David Austern, the Claims Administrator has stated on the SFDCT website (www.sfdct.com) that they are actively tackling this issue. However, as noted above, I still have claimants from 2005 whose GCTS claims have not been approved or reviewed. Three years is a long time to wait for any news about a disease claim.
Frustration # 2: There are Claimants Unwilling to Go to the Doctor Even Though They Are Sick.
This is one of my biggest frustrations. I talk to so many women during the week and almost always these women inform me that they suffer from chronic fatigue, short term memory problems, joint pain, muscle pain, and numbness/tingling in their joints. The problem is that many of these women do not want to go to the doctor or pursue a disease claim. When I ask these women for their reasons why, inevitably they always tell me the same thing, they do not wish to see another unsympathetic doctor.
Unfortunately it seems that many doctors in the medical community are not sympathetic to women with breast implants and their complaints. In fact, many of these women are told that breast implants absolutely cause no problems and some doctors have even suggested psychiatric evaluations instead of treating their patient’s physical ailments.
After years of dealing with unsympathetic doctors, I understand that a claimant may be reluctant to see another doctor for their disease claim. Please note however that if you are sick, filing a disease claim can assist you in many ways: (1) You may be eligible for payment and receive a benefit with a range of $10,000 to $250,000; and (2) This money can in turn be used for your treatment and / or medications.
David Austern recently stated that there are approximately 14,000 claims in which the claimant has acceptable proof showing they received Dow Corning implants, but they have not filed a Disease Claim. Let me reiterate this again: 14,000 people who may be sick but are not filing their disease claims!! That is just too large of a number to ignore.
At the Law Offices of Stephen M. Frailich, it is our desire to assist Dow Corning claimants with their disease claims. We understand your frustrations with the medical system and we work with doctors that are sympathetic to breast implant claimants. It is our goal to have our clients properly diagnosed and then compensated for their breast implant related symptoms.
As some of you may know, recently I went on maternity leave and I now have a 5 month old baby girl. I would like to teach my daughter that there are strong women in the world and these women are willing to take on the challenges that life brings them.
It is time for these 14,000 women to have their voices heard and to stand up to the challenges they are encountering in the doctor’s offices. It is time to overcome the obstacles in obtaining proper diagnoses. It is time for women to be compensated properly for their physical problems related to breast implants.
Now is the time to take action, and we are here to help.
Sincerely,
Reena B. FrailichPAST COMMENTARY BY STEPHEN FRAILICH
