By Paul Feldman on June 20, 2017
More than 200 scientists and public health advocates are urging regulators to take a closer look at the potential dangers of antimicrobial chemicals including triclosan, an additive that has been banned from hand soaps but remains an active ingredient in products ranging from building materials to Colgate’s Total toothpaste. The call for better labeling and…
Posted in Air Pollution/Toxic Exposure, Consumer Protection, Pharmaceutical Industry and Drugs, Product Hazards and Recalls, Uncategorized |
By Paul Feldman on June 7, 2017
Each year, roughly three dozen children die of heatstroke in unattended vehicles. Today three congressmen and a coalition of safety groups announced plans to do something about it, through legislation to require alerts in cars as a reminder that there may still be a child in the back. The proposal, backed by more than two…
Posted in Auto and Highway Safety, FairWarning Reports, Uncategorized |
By Paul Feldman on May 30, 2017
In the four months since President Trump took office, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued four news releases announcing penalties for job safety violations. By the end of May last year, it had issued 199. The recent reticence has spurred six U.S. senators, all Democrats, to ask what’s up at OSHA. In…
Posted in Environmental Safety and Health, FairWarning Reports, Uncategorized, Workplace, Workplace Safety and Health |
By Paul Feldman on May 16, 2017
Each year, roughly 150 motorists are killed when their cars plow into the sides of big-rig trailers, slicing off the windshields and roofs. But many of these gruesome underride deaths can be prevented, according to a new study and crash videos from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The research shows that a trailer side…
Posted in Auto and Highway Safety, FairWarning Reports, Uncategorized |
By Paul Feldman on May 11, 2017
Winemakers could soon receive a tax break that would spur production of higher-alcohol wines, a move that would pad their bottom lines but that has health advocates seeing red. The proposal, which has strong bipartisan support in Congress, would cut taxes by 50 cents per gallon on wines with high alcohol content. Wineries that now take…
Posted in Consumer Protection, FairWarning Reports, Product Hazards and Recalls, Uncategorized |
By Paul Feldman on April 4, 2017
Pedestrian deaths are surging across the nation, and analysts are putting much of the blame on drivers and walkers who are looking at their smartphones instead of watching where they are going. Tipsy walking also is part of the problem, with one in three victims legally drunk when they were struck and killed. The latest…
Posted in Auto and Highway Safety, Cell Phones, Gadgets and Distracted Driving, FairWarning Reports |
Legal Clash with FTC on Marketing of Used Cars
By Paul Feldman on March 27, 2017
Can a used car be marketed as “safe” or “certified” even if it has defective air bags, a faulty ignition switch or other potentially lethal problems? Yes, so long as the used car dealer discloses that the vehicle may be subject to a pending safety recall. That stance, taken by the Federal Trade Commission, is…
Posted in Auto and Highway Safety, FairWarning Reports, Product Hazards and Recalls, Uncategorized |
By Paul Feldman on March 2, 2017
Editor's note: See update at bottom of story.
In November, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced fines against businesses with workers who were killed when they were pulled into a wood chipper, burned in a refinery fire and crushed in collapsing grain bins and construction trenches. In all, OSHA issued 33 enforcement news releases that month, and over 50 more from…
Posted in FairWarning Investigates, Whistleblowers, Workplace, Workplace Safety and Health |
By Paul Feldman on February 23, 2017
More than 4,800 American workers are killed on the job each year. But in states that were carried by Donald Trump, the chances of dying at work are higher than in states that Hillary Clinton won. With a single exception, the states that voted Republican had at least three job-related deaths per 100,000 workers, according…
Posted in FairWarning Reports, Workplace, Workplace Safety and Health |
Researchers Raise Concerns About Chemicals in Fast-Food Packaging
By Paul Feldman on February 1, 2017
As if cheeseburgers, fries and microwave popcorn weren’t enough of a dietary worry, now comes word that fast-food packaging is also a cause for concern. In a paper published today, federal government and university researchers report finding chemicals from a suspect family of compounds in the wrappers and containers of one out of every three…
Posted in Consumer Protection, Environmental Safety and Health, FairWarning Reports, Product Hazards and Recalls, Uncategorized |
