Researchers link a 2010 outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease that sickened eight in Wisconsin to a decorative water wall in a hospital lobby. None of the eight victims, who all recovered, had been admitted patients at the Milwaukee-area hospital at the time of exposure but they all had walked by the water wall in the main lobby. The disease is a severe form of pneumonia that can be spread by inhaling bacteria from contaminated water. The Washington Post, Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology
U.S. will spend $1.8 million as redress for “reprehensible” syphilis and gonorrhea studies in Guatemala. The Obama administration said it would allocate the funds to examine rules for protecting medical research volunteers and to fight sexually transmitted diseases in the Central American country. The abusive research, conducted in the 1940s but not revealed until 2009, involved U.S. and Guatemalan doctors who, to evaluate the effectiveness of penicillin, infected prostitutes and prisoners without their knowledge. The Washington Post
Binge drinking increases. A federal survey for 2010 found that one in six U.S. adults acknowledged binge drinking at least once in the previous month, a slight increase from the year before, and the average number of drinks consumed was eight. The binge drinking rate was even higher, one in four, among adults ages 18 to 34. It was most common in the upper Midwest. The Wall Street Journal, The Associated Press
Adulterated milk flows in India. The nation’s food safety regulator found that 68.4 percent of the milk samples it examined didn’t meet its standards. Most samples were diluted with water, skimmed milk powder or sweeteners, but others contained hydrogen peroxide, urea and detergent. The Wall Street Journal
Congressional investigators fault food safety auditors in the listeria outbreak that killed 30 last year. Jensen Farms in Colorado, which produced the tainted cantaloupe linked to the outbreak, was given a “superior” rating by an independent auditor one month before consumers started becoming ill. House Democrats complained to the Food and Drug Administration that “weakness in third-party auditors represent a significant gap in the food-safety system because the auditors are often the only entities to inspect a farm or facility.” Bloomberg
Metals recycler accused of polluting San Francisco Bay with lead, mercury, PCBs, copper and zinc. Federal authorities cited the Redwood City, Calif., operation of Sims Metal Management, which bills itself as the world’s largest metal recycling company. Under the Clean Water Act, the company, which shreds about 300,000 cars a year at the site, could face fines of up to $37,500 a day. San Jose Mercury News, EPA
Workplace safety authorities seek fines of up to $146,300 against upstate New York felt manufacturer. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Heath Administration cited American Felt & Filter Co., in the Hudson Valley community of New Windsor, on 35 serious or repeat violations. Officials said the company failed to protect workers from such hazards as asbestos, lead and excessive noise. OSHA
Natural gas industry pumps money into coffers of New York State politicians. A report by the watchdog group Common Cause said the industry over the last four years gave $1.34 million to politicians and their parties in the state, which is debating whether to allow the drilling practice known as fracking. Three-quarters of the money went to candidates for the state legislature, including $448,359 given to Republican senate hopefuls and their campaign organizations. New York Daily News, Common Cause
Coal mine cleanup could cost West Virginia “tens of millions” of dollars. Legislative auditors criticized the state’s Department of Environmental Protection for mismanagement, saying the agency lacks accurate information on water pollution cleanup costs and often fails to complete required inspections of abandoned mines. Agency officials disputed the assessment, saying that the auditors misunderstood the complexity of insuring mine reclamation projects. The Charleston Gazette
Recalls: Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey Vehicles, Ford Escape, Carruth tea lights
Compiled by Stuart Silverstein
