Current Events

BMW is recalling certain 7-Series cars from the 2005 to 2007 model years that are equipped with optional features called Comfort Access and Soft Close Automatic doors. The company built the affected cars from Aug. 23, 2004, through Sept. 3, 2007. The recall includes 7,485 vehicles.

In a filing with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration the car maker said a software problem could cause the doors to open unexpectedly even after they appear to be closed and latched.

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The disclosure this week that the deaths of five people since 2009 may be linked to a popular energy drink has revealed major gaps in the way federal regulators and companies monitor product safety.

Food and Drug Administration officials say that they are aggressively investigating the death reports, which are associated with Monster Energy, a highly caffeinated beverage. And its producer, the Monster Beverage Corporation, insists its products are safe, adding that it was unaware, apart from one fatality report, of other filings about deaths and serious injuries linked to its drinks.

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Johnson & Johnson has recalled more than 157,000 surgical stapler devices and accessories used in hemorrhoids treatment procedures due to potential malfunctions that pose a serious safety risk.

J&J's Ethicon Endo-Surgery division also has stopped selling one of the products in the U.S. "as part of a business decision," the company said.

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We are facing a medical malpractice crisis in our country.

More than 98,000 people die every year because of preventable medical errors. That is equivalent to two 737s crashing every day for a whole year. Preventable medical errors are the sixth leading cause of death in the United States and cost our country $29 billion a year.

Lawsuits are only a symptom of the disease. The root of the medical malpractice problem is medical malpractice itself.

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The death toll linked to a meningitis outbreak has reached 15 people across the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control on Sunday.

According to the center’s latest figures, 205 fungal meningitis cases have been reported, with the bulk of them in Tennessee (53), Michigan (41), Virginia (34) and Indiana (28).

Researchers have connected the outbreak to tainted steroid injections for  back pain, made by  a beleaguered Massachusetts compounding pharmacy. The steroid, which was injected into 14,000 people starting last May, has been recalled, as have all other products by the pharmacy.

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When Bank of America agreed in December to pay $335 million to resolve federal charges that its mortgage-lending arm discriminated against black and Hispanic borrowers, government officials hailed it as the largest fair-lending settlement in history.

But, in fact, the banking giant has the right to a massive discount on the payout. Thirty-five percent of the settlement is deductible. That means Bank of America could wind up saving $117 million on its tax bill.

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The death toll from an outbreak of a rare form of fungal meningitis has risen to 14, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. Further, the first Western state has reported a case.

In a posting on its website, the CDC said 170 cases -- including 14 deaths -- have now been reported across the  country.

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In December 2010, St. Jude Medical Inc. issued a warning letter to doctors: Wires inside Riata defibrillator leads—cables that connect the heart to implantable defibrillators—were sometimes breaking through their insulation from the inside out.

The problem, which ultimately led to a recall last year, could cause defibrillators to send unnecessary jolts to the heart or fail to deliver lifesaving shocks to return chaotic heart rhythms back to normal. The company said it had identified dozens of cases with visible signs of the problem, and pulled Riata from the market.

For many doctors, this was the first notice of a problem with Riata.

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Insurance companies, often stuck with the tab for health services when a medical device fails, are ready to share the pain.

As the number of costly, high-profile recalls rises, along with pressure to cut their own spending, insurers are starting to pin more of the responsibility on manufacturers.

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New England Compounding Pharmacy, investigated in connection with a meningitis outbreak that has killed eight people and sickened 105, yesterday recalled all of its products.

The outbreak in nine U.S. states has been linked by the Food and Drug Administration to contaminated steroids used for back pain sold by the Framingham, Massachusetts-based company. Also known as New England Compounding Center, the company is cooperating with probes by the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NECC said in a statement.

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The number of people sickened by a nationwide meningitis outbreak has risen to at least 91 patients in nine states, with seven deaths, health officials said Sunday, and potentially hundreds more could be affected.

Tennessee, Virginia, Maryland, Florida, North Carolina and Indiana had previously reported cases. This weekend, Michigan, Minnesota and Ohio joined the list. Tennessee has been hardest hit, with 32 cases and three deaths.

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