Frozen Hamburgers in California and Oregon Recalled
GE and Professional Series Brand Dehumidifiers Recalled
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News & Notes
Tuesday Briefing
May 22, 2012 |
Maryland becomes first state to prohibit additive containing arsenic in chicken feed. Gov. Martin O’Malley today signed into law a measure that bans roxarsone, a drug to help chickens grow and fight parasites. Pfizer Inc., the company that produces roxarsone, stopped selling it last year after a U.S. Food and Drug Administration study found higher inorganic arsenic levels in chickens given the additive. Tom Hucker, a Democrat who sponsored the bill in the Maryland House, said the law is needed to prevent arsenic additives from being used again. He said Maryland’s action could embolden lawmakers in states with far bigger poultry industries, such as Georgia, North Carolina and Arkansas. The Associated Press, The Washington Post
Dog bite claims gobble up bigger insurance payouts. The incidents accounted for more than one-third of U.S. homeowners insurance liability claims paid in 2011, costing nearly $479 million. The Insurance Information Institute said the average cost of the claims, which include medical and legal expenses, was $29,396 last year, up from $19,162 in 2004. The American Tort Reform Association, a business group, faulted trial lawyers in California and Illinois, the states with the biggest payouts, for “seizing on yet another money making opportunity.” But an insurance official largely attributed the trend to more people owning dogs and to more parents getting advanced medical care for children who suffer bites. USA Today, Judicial Hellholes
Controversial head of Nuclear Regulatory Commission to step down. Gregory B. Jaczko, whose three years as commission chairman have been marked by battles with colleagues and Congress, said he will leave as soon as a successor is confirmed. The commission’s inspector general is preparing a report expected to repeat previously aired charges of mismanagement and verbal abuse of subordinates. Jaczko sought to address longstanding safety problems at the 104 nuclear power reactors in the U.S., and won praise for the U.S. response after the triple meltdown of Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi reactors last year. But he was viewed with skepticism by some industry insiders, and became a target of Republican critics. The New York Times, The Washington Post
Panel advises dropping PSA test for prostate cancer screening. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force concluded that the side effects from needless biopsies and treatments hurt many more men than are potentially helped. At best, it found, one life will be saved for every 1,000 men screened over 10 years. But 100 to 120 men will have suspicious results when there is no cancer, triggering biopsies that can carry complications. If cancer is detected, 90 percent of men are treated with surgery or radiation even though most tumors are not life-threatening. “There is a small potential benefit and a significant known harm,” said the head of the task force. The American Urological Association disputed the recommendation. Los Angeles Times
Fatal building collapse leads to proposed fines of $77,880 against New York contractor. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration charged SP&K Construction of Brooklyn, N.Y., with 11 safety violations in connection with the accident last November in the Brighton Beach neighborhood. OSHA said the company knew that the building was unstable but went ahead anyway with pouring concrete from the top down, leading the building’s third, fourth, and fifth floors to collapse. Along with the worker who was killed, four others were hospitalized with injuries. “Had proper procedures and safeguards been followed, this fatal collapse could have been prevented,” an OSHA official said. New York Daily News, OSHA
Recalls: 4ZA bicycle handlebar stems, Diamond Pet Foods dry dog food (expanded recall), River Ranch Fresh Foods bagged salads (expanded recall)
Compiled by Stuart Silverstein
Leave a CommentMonday Briefing
May 21, 2012 |
United Kingdom lowers expectations for shale gas. Supporters of the controversial drilling practice known as fracking -- which blasts water, sand and chemicals at extreme pressures to release gas trapped deep in rock – have argued it could transform Britain's energy market. But the government is backing away from the idea. Industry experts disclosed at ...
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Johnson & Johnson /McNeill Consumer Healthcare is a prime example of corporate corruption, dishonesty and malfeasance. They don’t care one bit about how many people they harm. What may be even worse is the fact that the main media outlets are not reporting the WHOLE story.
A TIMELINE OF THE MCNEIL CONSUMER HEALTHCARE / JOHNSON & JOHNSON RECALLS:
2008 — “Phantom recall” — Johnson & Johnson allegedly hired contractors to pose as customers and buy adult Motrin in order to remove the product from store shelves.
November 2009 — Recall of five lots of Tylenol Arthritis Pain Caplets because of an unusual smell or taste. Consumers reported nausea and related symptoms.
December 2009 — Expanded recall to include ALL lots of Tylenol Arthritis Pain Caplets.
January 15, 2010 — Massive recall of over-the-counter drugs because of an odor was caused by the presence of a chemical called 2,4,6-tribromoanisole (TBA). The recall includes, but is not limited to: Tylenol (many versions), Motrin, Benadryl, Rolaids, St. Joseph’s Aspirin, and Simply Sleep products. Many people were sickened by the odor — including nausea, stomach pain, vomiting and diarrhea.
The FDA said McNeil knew of the problem in early 2008.
March 31, 2010 – McNeil recalls Zyrtec Itchy Eye Drops
April 30, 2010: Recall of more than 40 types of children’s and infants’ products – 135 million bottles. Quality issues included the possibility of the medication containing too much of the active ingredient, containing substandard inactive ingredients, and/or containing tiny particles.
May 5, 2010: Additional recalls: Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl and ZYRTEC. The FDA found “serious” problems at the McNeil Consumer Healthcare plant. Raw materials were found to be contaminated with bacteria, but they were used anyway. Quality control was lacking. And the company didn’t investigate potential manufacturing mess-ups, even after receiving consumer complaints about medicines contaminated with black particles, the report notes. “The findings are serious,” FDA official Deborah Autor tells the Washington Post. “Consumers should not use these products.”
May 6, 2010 – Philadelphia Public Health Examiner: The FDA has charged that McNeil knew the raw material had known contamination with gram negative organisms [bacteria] yet approved it for use to manufacture several lots of Children’s and Infant’s Tylenol drug products.
May 6, 2010 – CNNMoney.com — The FDA confirmed that the bacteria found at the Johnson & Johnson plant that produced the recalled children’s medicines was Burkholderia cepacia.
May 28, 2010: Blacksmith Brands recalls four PediaCare children’s cough and cold products manufactured at the same McNeil Consumer Healthcare plant.
June 15, 2010: McNeil expandes 1/15/10 recall to include five more lots of Benadryl and Tylenol that were “inadvertently omitted from the initial recall action.” Congress announced it would investigate.
July 8, 2010: Recalls of 21 more lots of over-the-counter medicines sold in the U.S., Fiji, Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Trinidad & Tobago and Jamaica, including: Benadryl, Motrin, Zyrtec, Tylenol in various forms.
Also, five complaints filed in the U.S. District Court for Northern Illinois against McNeil are seeking class-action status. Consumers accused McNeil of fraud and racketeering for not recalling all of its children’s products and for not adequately reimbursing consumers for their out-of-pocket expenses. . The buyers of those recalled meds are demanding cash refunds–rather than coupons for replacement products–in five suits.
July 16, 2010 – Rep. Towns, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, says Johnson & Johnson has used delaying tactics in its dealings with the committee and had provided misinformation. . . The FDA has referred the McNeil case to its office of criminal investigation. http://www.jerebeasleyreport.com/2010/07/drug-maker-fails-to-cooperate/
November 29, 2010 – Recalls of over 12 million bottles of Mylanta and 85,000 bottles of Alternagel. The bottles failed to note the alcohol content.
December 10, 2010 – Recalls of more than 13 million packages of Rolaids anti-acid tablets following reports of foreign substances inside the tablets, including bits of wood and metal suspected to be in bottles all over the country.
January 2011 – Recalls of SUDAFED, Tylenol, and additional non-prescription medication.
When will the entire story be exposed? When will the media investigate and make a full report? When will J & J be shut down?