Latest news with #HealthInsurancePortabilityandAccountabilityAct
7NEWS
a day ago
- Entertainment
- 7NEWS
Blake Lively drops ‘emotional distress' claim in lawsuit against Justin Baldoni
Celebrity lawyer Christopher Melcher has said Blake Lively has 'gutted,' her lawsuit against It Ends With Us co-star Justin Baldoni, after she dropped the 'emotional distress' component of the legal action. Lively claims she was sexually harassed by Baldoni and producer Jamey Heath on the set of the film before being subjected to a smear campaign. Baldoni has always denied these claims. Baldoni launched a defamation lawsuit for $US400 million ($619 million) against Lively and husband Ryan Reynolds, claiming she attempted to extort him and defame him. Lively withdrew her claims against Justin Baldoni after his lawyers requested the actress sign a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) release, forcing her to disclose therapy notes on her mental health. On Wednesday, Melcher said the claims were central to Lively's overall claim. 'Blake has withdrawn her emotional distress claims because Justin wanted access to her therapy records to see if she was really that distraught, as she claimed in her lawsuit,' Melcher told Natalie Barr and Matt Shirvington on Sunrise. 'So, she clearly placed that at issue, made it fair game, he wanted to see the records. In response, she dropped the claim.' Melcher was pressed on what it would do to her claim. 'It's really gutting it because that was one of the hallmarks to it,' Melcher replied. 'She was saying that all these things that allegedly happened to her made her extremely distraught, and, sure, she wants to keep that stuff private, but she can't also sue for damages in court while doing so. 'So, she had to make that difficult choice. Now, that it's dropped, there's other parts of her claim, but really the centrepiece of it was the embarrassment and humiliation and distress that she claims she suffered.' Melcher explained Lively was probably advised this would happen by her lawyers. 'This is something us as lawyers talk to the client about (before the case),' she said. 'Any kind of litigation, (we ask) do you really want to go through this? This is very difficult for anyone to do. You put yourself out there in public court. So, it is surprising that she's just realising this now.' Despite the controversy, the 2024 domestic violence drama, which became a box-office hit, earned $351 million at the box office worldwide from a budget of $25 million. According to Variety, Lively is attempting to withdraw without prejudice, which Baldoni's lawyers have argued against. A withdrawal without prejudice would mean Lively could refile the claims at a later date. Melcher gave his legal opinion. 'I think that it's very easy to type up a complaint and file it in court, but it is difficult to establish it,' he said. 'She came out as the victim and a lot of people supported her at the beginning, but then the information that we're seeing is that she might have actually been the bully in this story. '(But) of course, only a jury will tell.' Stream free on
India Today
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- India Today
Blake Lively to drop emotional distress claims in Justin Baldoni lawsuit
Actress Blake Lively has moved the court to withdraw her claims of intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress against Justin Baldoni, her director and co-star in 'It Ends with Us', according to a recent filing reported by Variety. In 2004, she filed a sexual harassment complaint against Baldoni, accusing him of misconduct on the film legal dispute between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni is centred around alleged misconduct and conflicts behind the scenes of the 'It Ends with Us' production. The actor initially claimed that Baldoni's actions caused her 'severe emotional distress and pain, humiliation, embarrassment, belittlement, frustration, and mental anguish.'advertisementThe request to dismiss the emotional distress claims came on June 2, following Baldoni's legal team's efforts to obtain Blake's medical records as part of their defence. Baldoni's attorneys sought a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) release to access her therapy notes and other relevant documents. The filing stated: 'Instead of complying with the Medical Requests for Production (RFPs), Ms. Lively's counsel recently advised us, in writing, that Ms. Lively is withdrawing her [emotional distress] claims.' The document further criticised the move as an attempt to avoid disclosure, while reserving the right to refile the claims lawyers, Esra Hudson and Mike Gottlieb, dismissed the filing as 'a press stunt,' explaining that their client is 'streamlining and focusing' her court is now tasked with deciding whether Blake must provide her mental health information or whether the emotional distress claims will be dismissed, with or without dispute began in December 2024, when Blake filed a sexual harassment complaint against Baldoni, accusing him of misconduct on set and retaliatory smear tactics. Baldoni denied the allegations and countersued Blake, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and their publicists in January 2025, accusing them of extortion and cases, consolidated under Lively v. Wayfarer Studios, are set for trial in March Watch
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
DeWine unveils recommendations to help close missing persons cases in Ohio
May 28—A group of law enforcement, family members of the missing, advocates and educators have called for several changes aimed at improving the efficiency of missing persons investigations in Ohio. Governor Mike DeWine and Ohio Department of Public Safety Director Andy Wilson announced nearly 20 recommendations from the Ohio Missing Persons Working Group on Tuesday. The group recommended 18 areas of improvement around information sharing between law enforcement agencies, communication between family members and investigators, continued professional training, and public education. The group was formed in January. DeWine has already ordered several agencies to carry out these recommendations, including automating notification of law enforcement agencies of Endangered Missing Child Alerts, creating a best practices guide on interacting with families of missing persons, expanding the Ohio Prisoner Extradition Reimbursement Program, and continued professional training for the healthcare industry on law enforcement exemptions to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, commonly known as HIPAA. Additionally, several state agencies that work with children and mental health have been directed to work with local law enforcement to develop a pilot program for advocates to support at-risk youth who regularly leave their homes or group home settings. "Thousands of children and adults are reported missing each year, and although most are located quickly, some simply vanish, leaving anguished families behind and adding to law enforcement's growing caseload," DeWine said. "The goal of this working group was to identify what more we could do as a state to help law enforcement bring more missing people home and support family members during a time of great despair." Other recommendations were made to the Ohio Attorney General's Bureau of Criminal Investigation, whose Missing Persons Unit is the state authority on missing persons investigations, according to the Governor's office. Suggestions for BCI include the creation of a central repository of resources for families and investigators, the launch of an annual missing persons conference, and the establishment of a confidential forum for law enforcement to discuss investigative techniques and perform case reviews. 'A great idea' House Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington, told reporters Wednesday that she supports the task force findings and deferred to her colleague Rep. Christine Cockley, D-Columbus, who joint sponsors a bipartisan bill that would require all Ohio law enforcement to upload missing persons' information into a national database within 30 days of a report. "We think it's a great idea, (Cockley) is certainly supportive of it and we have legislation in this space to address these missing person cases," Russo said. House Speaker Matt Huffman, R-Lima, said he'd like to take time to review the task force's recommendations, but said it should be something the legislature could get done before lawmakers go on summer recess. "I think we could probably get that done by June 30. So, I think we'll take the recommendations, see what that looks like, and try to get that done," he said.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
DeWine unveils recommendations to help close missing persons cases in Ohio
May 28—A group of law enforcement, family members of the missing, advocates and educators have called for several changes aimed at improving the efficiency of missing persons investigations in Ohio. Governor Mike DeWine and Ohio Department of Public Safety Director Andy Wilson announced nearly 20 recommendations from the Ohio Missing Persons Working Group on Tuesday. The group recommended 18 areas of improvement around information sharing between law enforcement agencies, communication between family members and investigators, continued professional training, and public education. The group was formed in January. DeWine has already ordered several agencies to carry out these recommendations, including automating notification of law enforcement agencies of Endangered Missing Child Alerts, creating a best practices guide on interacting with families of missing persons, expanding the Ohio Prisoner Extradition Reimbursement Program, and continued professional training for the healthcare industry on law enforcement exemptions to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, commonly known as HIPAA. Additionally, several state agencies that work with children and mental health have been directed to work with local law enforcement to develop a pilot program for advocates to support at-risk youth who regularly leave their homes or group home settings. "Thousands of children and adults are reported missing each year, and although most are located quickly, some simply vanish, leaving anguished families behind and adding to law enforcement's growing caseload," DeWine said. "The goal of this working group was to identify what more we could do as a state to help law enforcement bring more missing people home and support family members during a time of great despair." Other recommendations were made to the Ohio Attorney General's Bureau of Criminal Investigation, whose Missing Persons Unit is the state authority on missing persons investigations, according to the Governor's office. Suggestions for BCI include the creation of a central repository of resources for families and investigators, the launch of an annual missing persons conference, and the establishment of a confidential forum for law enforcement to discuss investigative techniques and perform case reviews. 'A great idea' House Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington, told reporters Wednesday that she supports the task force findings and deferred to her colleague Rep. Christine Cockley, D-Columbus, who joint sponsors a bipartisan bill that would require all Ohio law enforcement to upload missing persons' information into a national database within 30 days of a report. "We think it's a great idea, (Cockley) is certainly supportive of it and we have legislation in this space to address these missing person cases," Russo said. House Speaker Matt Huffman, R-Lima, said he'd like to take time to review the task force's recommendations, but said it should be something the legislature could get done before lawmakers go on summer recess. "I think we could probably get that done by June 30. So, I think we'll take the recommendations, see what that looks like, and try to get that done," he said.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Measles confirmed in Broward child under 4 in April, officials say
There was one case of measles in Broward County in April, according to state records, at the same time a link to those records was briefly removed from the state website. A child between the age of 0 (used to refer to newborns) and 4 contracted measles from outside of the U.S. in April in Broward County, according to the Florida Department of Health (DOH) Reportable Disease Frequency Report. Measles is considered one of the most contagious infections for humans, according to Dr. Aileen Marty, a professor at Florida International University and an expert in infectious disease and disaster medicine. If a person with measles comes in contact with a group of unvaccinated people, there is a 90% chance of the unvaccinated person becoming ill, according to the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases. A link to the state report, which tracks the spread of infectious diseases across the state's 67 counties, was removed from DOH's main website earlier this year, according to a story in the South Florida Sun Sentinel. According to the article, published on May 9, the last time that chart was available was in March. The website was getting upgraded at the time, DOH spokesperson Isabel Kilman told the USA TODAY Network – Florida. But now, the tracker, which can be found as a link on the FLHealthCHARTS website, shows a measles case in Broward County in April. It occurred one month after a high schooler at Miami Palmetto Senior High School in Miami-Dade County was diagnosed with the highly-contagious disease. There are no alerts on the the Florida Department of Health in Broward County website or the state DOH website about the measles case in April. Kilman could not confirm to a USA TODAY Network – Florida reporter that the department did contact tracing with the case in Broward County, but did say if its epidemiologists had a reason to believe people came in contact with someone with measles, they would be notified. Contact tracing is the process of identifying people who have recently been in contact with someone diagnosed with an infectious disease, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. In a statement sent by email, DOH said it could not disclose personal information about the case because of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA. It establishes federal standards protecting sensitive health information from disclosure without patient's consent, according to the CDC. "The Department works closely with schools and school systems to ensure that students, faculty, and parents are informed when appropriate. Anyone who may have been in contact with an infected individual is promptly and directly notified to ensure the safety and well-being of the community," the statement says. The exact age of the child is unknown, as the state's data provides a range from 0 to 4 years old. But a spokesperson for Broward County Schools said the district's Coordinated Student Health Services Department reported it has not had a documented case of measles this year. Last year, the county saw a measles outbreak that resulted in nine infections. DOH's response at the time was criticized after Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo contradicted federal and medical professional guidance to contain the spread. As previously reported, measles infections in the U.S. have topped 1,000 in 2025. While Texas remains the epicenter battling the largest number of cases, the presence of measles has been confirmed in 30 states by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) as of Friday, March 9. Recently, a person infected measles may have spread the virus at a Shakira concert in New Jersey, according to news reports. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, only 88.1% of kindergarteners in Florida were vaccinated against measles in 2023-2024. Herd immunity for measles requires a 95% vaccination rate. Whether someone gets measles are a child or as an adult, it affects the body's immune response, Marty said. Measles can cause viral pneumonia or in some cases bacterial pnuemonia, because it diminishes the immune system. It's rare, but some children that contract measles will, years later, manifest serious neurologic problems, she added. "If you look at what's been going on in the United States, for example ... We won't know the total toll of that outbreak for six to 10 years because of this sort of under-the-radar type of problem that manifests so much later," she said. Ana Goñi-Lessan, state watchdog reporter for the USA TODAY Network – Florida, can be reached at agonilessan@ This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Broward measles case in April adds to growing national resurgence
