Current Events

GlaxoSmithKline is recalling a “small” number of batches of its Bactroban penicillin following a harsh rebuke from US regulators about contamination at a key plant. The move comes after the US Food and Drug Administration sent a stern warning letter Tuesday to the drug maker about a host of quality-control problems at the facility, which is located in Worthing in the United Kingdom.
Read more . . .

Volkswagen AG is facing new lawsuits by New York and at least two other states that might cost the company hundreds of billions of dollars for cheating on pollution-control tests.

The suits include claims that former VW Chief Executive Officer Martin Winterkorn and other top company executives orchestrated an elaborate coverup when the scam came to light, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said. New York’s complaint was filed Tuesday in state court in Albany, the attorney general said.

Read more . . .

The Justice Department is preparing lawsuits to block two giant health insurance deals, according to a person briefed on the matter, continuing a spate of antitrust actions in a whirlwind year for mergers and acquisitions.

Antitrust officials are concerned that Aetna’s $37 billion deal with Read more . . .

As automakers race to create cars that can drive themselves, a growing chorus of consumer advocates is demanding that the companies — and their federal regulators — slow down.

Read More

The airbag maker Takata on Friday settled a closely watched lawsuit involving the injury and eventual death of a woman whose car crashed in 2014.

The settlement was announced moments before a critical hearing in which a judge in Jacksonville, Fla., could have ordered the company’s chief executive, Shigehisa Takada, to testify in the case.

Even the lawyer representing the family of the victim, Patricia Mincey, said the sudden turn of events was unexpected.

“I had no expectations at all” of a settlement, said the lawyer, Theodore J.
Read more . . .

It was one of the fastest civil settlements in the history of corporate malfeasance, coming together in six months instead of the years usually required for such complex negotiations. But the path to Volkswagen’s $15 billion deal last month with American Read more . . .

A Bear man received second-degree burns to his leg and had to undergo skin graft surgery after an electronic cigarette battery exploded in his pocket, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday in Delaware.

George Ayers was walking from his car to his house with his arms full of groceries when one of the two batteries in his front pants pocket exploded on March 9, according to the lawsuit. His attorney described a chaotic scene in which Ayers' son saw the fire and could smell burning flesh.

"The public needs to be made aware of the danger of this product," his attorney Laura Simon said. "People are using it with no idea an explosion and severe burns can result.
Read more . . .

In an unusual move, Consumer Reports has called Tesla's Autopilot "Too Much Autonomy Too Soon" and called on the automaker to disable the hands-free feature until its safety can be improved. The system has come under increased scrutiny in the wake of a fatal May 7 crash in Florida, which U.S. safety regulators are investigating.

"By marketing their feature as 'Autopilot,' Tesla gives consumers a false sense of security," said Laura MacCleery, vice president of consumer policy and mobilization for Consumer Reports, in the article published Thursday.
Read more . . .

General Motors cannot avoid lawsuits from pre-bankruptcy ignition-switch defect victims, a federal court ruled Wednesday.

The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a bankruptcy judge's ruling that had protected GM from those lawsuits because of the company's 2009 bankruptcy restructuring.

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Wednesday approved a bill to tackle the nation’s opioid crisis, sending to the president’s desk the most sweeping drug legislation in years in a rare instance of consensus in Congress.

The measure, which passed, 92 to 2, would strengthen prevention, treatment and recovery efforts, largely by empowering medical professionals and law enforcement officials with more tools to help drug addicts. It would also expand access to a drug that emergency medical workers could use to help reverse overdoses and improve treatment for the incarcerated. Senator Ben Sasse, Republican of Nebraska, and Senator Mike Lee, Republican of Utah, voted against the measure. President Obama is expected to sign the bill.
Read more . . .

Even as federal safety officials step up their investigation of the fatal crash of a driver operating a Tesla car with its Autopilot system engaged, the company continues to defend the self-driving technology as safe when properly used.

The Read more . . .