Law360 reports that the Senate Commerce Committee last week unanimously approved Mark. R. Rosekind, President Barack Obama’s nominee to lead the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a week after the nominee assured the panel that he would restore the agency’s tarnished reputation following the General Motors Co. and Takata Corp. recalls. Rosekind has said he would boost efforts to catch automakers that don’t report safety defects and to enforce recalls.
Why McDonald’s says it wants to be in the schools
If McDonald’s has its way, reports CBS MoneyWatch the three R’s might end up being reading, writing and Ronald McDonald. That’s because the fast-food giant is planning to refocus on marketing to children and families in response to a serious problem on its plate. Thanks to changing tastes, the fast-food chain has suffered seven straight months of declining U.S. sales, with parents increasingly opting for rivals’ seemingly healthier meals.
Draft Regulations Ban Smoking in Public Places in China
Anti-tobacco advocates welcomed a new draft national smoking control regulations for public places, reports China Daily, but said the rules could still be strengthened. The draft by the National Health and Family Planning Commission was published on the website of the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council, pending public consultation. It would ban smoking in public places and also ban all forms of tobacco advertising, sponsorship and promotion of tobacco products, as well as certain smoking scenes in films and TV shows.
Gaps in FDA’s Antibiotics Policy
In December 2013, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration took steps to eliminate the use of antibiotics in food animals for growth promotion. It asked drug companies to remove indications for “feed efficiency” and “weight gain” from labels of antibiotic products and require veterinarians to oversee addition of these drugs to feed and water. The new policy is intended to reduce antibiotic misuse, which contributes to the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. A new report from the Pew Charitable Trust examines gaps in FDA policy that may allow some harmful practices to persist.
Worried about impact on industry, Japan may expand air bag recalls
Honda Motor and Mazda Motor may have to recall another 200,000 cars in Japan to replace Takata Corp air bags if Takata complies with a U.S. order to recall cars across the United States rather than just in humid regions, reports Japan Today. Several automakers in the U.S. have issued regional recalls of certain models to investigate what is causing some Takata air bags to explode with excessive force. U.S. safety regulators have ordered Takata to have those recalls expanded nationwide.
Jay Leno Cancels SHOT Show Appearance
After Jay Leno cancelled his appearance at the firearms industry 2015 SHOT Show State of the Industry Dinner, the National Sports Shooting Foundation, a gun industry trade group, issued a statement: “we are clearly disappointed by Jay Leno’s decision … He unilaterally cancelled his promised appearance due to pressure from the anti-gun lobby, which included false statements about our industry and its commitment to genuine firearms safety, which we attempted to personally correct with him, but to no avail… (We are not) unfamiliar with the bullying political tactics of the gun control groups that seem to have as little respect for the First Amendment as they continually demonstrate with regard to the Second Amendment.”
Drugging our kids: RX alliance rewards doctors as drug companies get richer
The Los Angeles Daily News analyzed financial ties between drug manufacturers and doctors who prescribed psychotropic medications to California foster children from July 2009 to July 2014. The investigation found that drug makers, anxious to expand the market for some of their most profitable products, spent more than $14 million from 2010 to 2013 to woo the California doctors who treat this captive and fragile audience of patients at taxpayers’ expense. The drug makers distribute their cash to all manner of doctors, but the investigation found that they paid the state’s foster care prescribers on average more than double what they gave to the typical California physician.
California can’t challenge ruling on concealed guns, court says
Relaxed rules for carrying concealed guns in public may not be challenged by California state officials or advocacy groups, a federal appeals panel decided, reports the Los Angeles Times. The decision was another victory for gun rights advocates, but it was not likely to be the last word. The state has the right to appeal Wednesday’s order and legal analysts expect the state to do so.
USA Today: Airbag Recall Deadly Slow
In an editorial, USA Today wrote, automobile air bags save about 2,300 lives each year, so when they instead turn deadly — exploding and spewing shrapnel into drivers’ bodies — you’d expect urgent action to get the defective products off the road. Instead, air bag maker Takata and its biggest customer, Honda, conducted glacial, piecemeal recalls that have left drivers in jeopardy.
Air Pollution Set to Soar as Vehicle Population Grows Exponentially in Indian Cities
International Business Times reports that the vehicle population on Indian roads will increase air pollution three to five times over, says a report from The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and the California Air Resources Board (CARB). Under current trends of vehicle population, and existing fuel and emission standards, particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometers will increase by a factor of three, while nitrous oxide emissions will rise by a factor of five.
Corporations and Health Watch 