Back in February, the United States Food and Drug Administration announced an interim rule covering infant formula that would require manufacturers to test for certain contaminants, as well as ensure that the products contain the right amount of nutrients. Today the agency announced that the new policy is set to be finalized. [More]
Quality & Safety
GM Admits Incompetence In Ignition Debacle, Denies Cover-Up
By 6.5.14
This morning, General Motors CEO Mary Barra discussed the findings of the car maker’s internal report on an ignition switch defect that went without a recall for more than a decade and has resulted in at least 13 deaths. The company’s findings claim that while GM screwed up big-time, there was no attempt by executives to cover the problem up. [More]
GSK To Pay $105 Million To Settle Advair, Paxil, Wellbutrin Disputes
By 6.4.14
Drug biggie GlaxoSmithKline has been slapped with another huge settlement for its questionable marketing tactics. This time, the pharma company has agreed to pay $105 million to resolve claims made by attorneys general from 45 states regarding the selling of asthma drug Advair and antidepressants Paxil and Wellbutrin. [More]
Before You Eat That, Check The FDA Flickr Account For Warnings About Recalled Products
By 6.4.14
With this that and the other thing getting recalled on what feels like a daily basis, maybe you feel like you don’t have the time to stay abreast of what foods aren’t safe to eat. That’s why the Food and Drug Administration has started its very own Flickr account to alert consumers when products are recalled. The more you know, the less you end up clinging to the bathroom floor for dear life in extreme gastrointestinal distress. H/T to The Verge [FDA Recalled Products 2014 on Flickr] [More]
GM Is Super Sorry It Sent Recall Notices To Families Of Crash Victims
By 6.4.14
By this point, most owners of recalled General Motors vehicles don’t need a notice from the car maker to know their ignition switches need work. One group of people who definitely don’t need reminding of this fact are the families of those who died in crashes tied to the ignition defect. [More]
Egg Company Agrees To Pay $6.8M Fine In Connection To Salmonella Outbreak That Sickened 62,000
By 6.3.14
Four years after tainted eggs caused a nationwide salmonella outbreak that sickened 62,000 people, the Iowa farm responsible for those ill-fated ovules has agreed to pay $6.8 million in fines for selling old eggs under false labels for years. [More]
FDA Launches New Public Database Tracking Which Drugs Do Not Play Nicely With Other Drugs
By 6.3.14
Medicinal drugs can be beneficial, even lifesaving — but not, always, in combination with each other. Putting two and two together in the human body can cause a million different unexpected, unintended, downright harmful side effects. Until now, those “adverse interactions” have been difficult to research, sort through, and track. But today, the FDA is launching a new initiative designed to let members of the public have access to, and make sense of, all the data. [More]
NHTSA Investigating Why Jeep Airbags Continue To Deploy On Their Own
By 6.2.14
When a car manufacturer initiates a recall and provides a remedy for the issue, you assume that fix is going to stick. But that may not be the case for the 2012 airbag-related recall of two Jeep models, as federal regulators are investigating why Chrysler’s fix has not eliminated the problem. [More]
Suspended GM Engineer “Forgot” He Had Bad Ignition Switch Fixed In 2006
By 5.30.14
Last year, the General Motors engineer who quietly signed off on a fix to an ignition problem that has resulted in at least 13 deaths claimed in a deposition that he had no knowledge of making this incredibly important improvement. But after Congressional investigators have turned up all sorts of evidence showing that he did indeed give the okay for this fix, the engineer reportedly says he simply forgot about it. [More]
Car Recallapalooza Continues As Ford Recalls 1.39 Million Vehicles
By 5.29.14
When we saw that Ford announced a recall of 1.39 million cars and sport-utility vehicles, we had to check back in the archives. Hadn’t we just posted about a Ford recall? Yes, it was only earlier this month that 692,000 vehicles were recalled because their airbags might not deploy. This latest batch mainly involves power steering failure in SUVs. [More]
May Food And Supplement Recall Roundup: Not So Dairy-Free
By 5.28.14
In our May Recall Roundup for food, supplements, and even a few over-the-counter drugs, there’s dairy in the dairy-free pancakes, Salmonella in the chili powder, and always a few precription drugs hiding in the “supplements.” [More]
FDA Doesn’t Seem To Care That Novartis Still Sells Antibiotic As Pig-Fattener
By 5.23.14
Last week, we told you how pharma biggie Novartis was still openly marketing at least one of its antibiotics as a growth-promoter for livestock, even though the FDA had politely asked drug companies to pretty please stop selling antibiotics for non-medical uses. Given the voluntary nature of this guidance, not to mention its numerous loopholes, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that both the FDA and Novartis shrugged off critics’ concerns. [More]
Hummus Sold At Target, Trader Joe’s, Giant Eagle Recalled For Potential Listeria Contamination
By 5.23.14
Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne pathogen that can have unpleasant consequences for most people, and serious, life-threatening consequences for people who are very old, very young, already ill, or who are pregnant. A company called Lansal, Inc. that manufactures hummus for Tryst Gourmet and the private-label brands of retailers Target, Trader Joe’s, and Giant Eagle, reports that the pathogen may be in their hummus and related products. [More]
Toyota Recalls Lexus GS For Braking Issues, Sienna Minivans Over Spare Tire Concerns
By 5.22.14
Not to be outdone by General Motors’ recallpalooza, Toyota announced a pair of recalls this morning — for Sienna minivans and Lexus GS sedans — totaling nearly 400,000 vehicles in the U.S. alone. [More]
Nest Officially Recalls Smoke Alarms, But You Just Need To Connect Yours To Web To Fix
By 5.21.14
Last month, the folks at Google-owned Nest alerted owners of the company’s Nest Protect smoke and carbon monoxide detectors that an software glitch could, under very specific circumstances, cause the device to delay sounding the alarm. Today, the company and the Consumer Product Safety Commission made it official with a formal recall announcement. [More]
GM Adds Another 200,000 Vehicles To Its Continually Growing Recall List
By 5.21.14
There is yet another recall to add to General Motor’s already swelling list. This time more than 200,000 subcompact cars were recalled for a potential fire hazard created by daytime running lights. [More]
Minnesota Bans Widely Used (But Pretty Much Useless) Antibacterial Soap Ingredient
By 5.20.14
In spite of the fact that the FDA has said that soap containing the antibacterial chemical triclosan is really no better at preventing the spread of germs than simply washing your hands with regular hot soap and water, it’s still widely used in soaps, cosmetics, deodorants and some toothpastes. And so the Minnesota state legislature recently voted to ban the use of triclosan. [More]
Study: More Kids Injured, Hospitalized After Gobbling Tiny Magnets Since 2009
By 5.20.14
Magnets. They can be fun toys, cute souvenirs, useful money-saving tools, or a life-threatening health hazard. Yes, it’s rare, but a study that will soon be published in the Journal of Pediatrics shows that in the last decade, strong and tiny magnets have become popular, are marketed as toys, and injuries resulting from magnet consumption have increased. [More]
