Health
Increase in prescriptions from docs could mean increase in perks for them
Lisa Chedekel of the Connecticut Health I-Team has found that in some cases “practitioners who wrote out hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of prescriptions were also receiving thousands in compensation from the drug-makers.”
Read MoreIs food-safety oversight keeping up with the surge in farmers markets?
“As the number of farmers markets has surged questions arise about whether food-safety oversight has kept pace. The USDA and the FDA set federal guidelines, wbut jurisdiction over farmers markets falls to a dizzying welter of state or local health or agriculture departments” “In a spot check of 29 markets scattered among 10 states and…
Read MoreTaking a look at how foreign-trained doctors impact a community
In a three-part series The Bakersfield Californian examines Kern County, California’s high number of foreign-trained doctors and the impact it has on patient care. Using the training she learned at an IRE Boot Camp, Christine Bedell, along with her colleague Kellie Schmitt, were able to make their own database to look at how many foreign-trained…
Read MoreBlack lung still threatening lives
“An investigation by NPR and the Center for Public Integrity found federal regulators and the mining industry are failing to protect miners from the excessive toxic coal mine dust that causes black lung. The disease is now being diagnosed in younger miners and evolving more quickly to complicated stages.” “The report also reveals widespread and…
Read MoreFlorida’s worst TB outbreak in 20 years ignored
“A Palm Beach Post investigation has found that a CDC officer had reported a tuberculosis outbreak in Jacksonville, Fla., one of the worst his group had seen in 20 years, but the report went unseen by key decision makers around the state.” “The outbreak, linked to 13 deaths and 99 illnesses, would require concerted action…
Read MoreNarcotic pain medicine use on the rise among seniors
“A Journal Sentinel investigation by John Fauber and Ellen Gabler has found that, increasingly, narcotic drugs have been prescribed for chronic pain, an area where their safety and effectiveness is unproven, especially for older patients.” “Though a growing number of experts believe the drugs may do more harm than good, the country’s aging population has…
Read MoreChildren who skip vaccinations raise threat of dangerous outbreak
An Arizona Star investigation has found that “one in three Arizona schools last year had kindergarten classes with vaccination rates so low children were left vulnerable to infectious disease outbreaks such as measles, mumps or pertussis.” It was discovered that “the worst offenders, by far, are charter and private schools, some with vaccination rates as…
Read MoreFlame retardants and the big business behind them
A Chicago Tribune investigation has found that the flame retardants that are packed into couches, chairs and many other products are not working as promised. Furthermore, two powerful industries–Big Tobacco and chemical manufacturers have waged a deceptive campaign that led to the proliferation of these chemicals. Sam Roe, Patricia Callahan and Michael Hawthorne utilized DocumentCloud…
Read MoreWhite House sought healthier school lunches, food industry fought back
Duff Wilson and Janet Roberts, for Reuters, report on “how food and beverage companies have dominated policymaking in Washington by doubling their lobbying expenditures during the past three years and defeating government proposals aimed at changing the nation’s diet.” Reuters Investigates TV also produced a video about “how the food industry fought back when the…
Read MoreEPA fails to warn families of lead contamination where smelters once stood
“USA Today’s investigative team found the EPA failed to tell people about or take action on hundreds of former lead smelting sites they’d known about for years. Alison Young and Pete Eisler tested the soil around former plants in 13 states and found potentially dangerous levels of lead remain in people’s yards and in parks.”…
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