Black history and heritage bulldozed by gas boom
Sasol North America, an energy and chemical company, has begun offering voluntary buyouts to many of the remaining residents of Mossville.
U.S. FDA commissioner to stand down after six years: sources
By Toni Clarke WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Dr. Margaret Hamburg, commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), who for almost six years has overseen public health initiatives ranging from tobacco control and food safety to personalized medicine, disease control and drug approvals, is stepping down, according to a person briefed on the matter. The White House is expected to announce Hamburg's resignation later on Friday, the person said. FDA spokeswoman Stephanie Yao declined to comment. Hamburg, 59, is one of the longest-serving FDA commissioners in the modern era.
New Jersey Governor Christie ducks media after vaccination comments
By Sam Wilkin LONDON (Reuters) – New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, a possible 2016 presidential contender, cancelled three scheduled media appearances in the UK on Tuesday, amid a controversy over his comments on measles vaccinations. His comments came a few hours after President Barack Obama said parents should have their children vaccinated, saying the science was “pretty indisputable.” Christie cancelled two question-and-answer sessions and a press statement he was due to make after meeting UK finance minister George Osborne. “We just decided we're not going to have availability today,” said Maria Comella, Christie's head of communications, after the last scheduled appearance was cancelled.
Obama tells parents to get kids vaccinated to stem measles
President Barack Obama is urging parents to get their children vaccinated in the face of a measles outbreak that has infected more than 100 people in the United States. In excerpts from an interview with NBC News that will air on Monday, Obama said measles was a preventable disease. He said that while he understood there were families concerned about the effect of vaccinations, he said the science was “pretty indisputable.” “We’ve looked at this again and again. There have been 91 measles cases in California, with at least 58 of those epidemiologically linked to a cluster that began at Disneyland in December.
British health worker being tested for Ebola after needle injury
A British military healthcare worker was flown back to England from Sierra Leone on Saturday following a needle-stick injury sustained while treating a person with Ebola, the Public Health England (PHE) service said on Saturday. The patient, who has not been named, has been taken for testing to the Royal Free Hospital in London. “They are likely to have been exposed to the Ebola virus but, at this time, have not been diagnosed with Ebola and do not have symptoms,” PHE said in a statement. The Royal Free, Britain's main center for Ebola cases, also successfully treated British aid worker William Pooley who contracted the virus in West Africa last year.
U.S. military pay reforms could save $12 billion yearly: panel
By David Alexander WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A congressionally appointed panel on U.S. military compensation recommended overhauling retirement and healthcare benefits on Thursday to improve services offered to troops and families while cutting costs by up to $12.6 billion annually. The nine-member panel, including former military leaders and lawmakers, recommended the Pentagon broaden its retirement benefits to provide 401(K)-style savings plans for most service members while retaining a slimmed-down version of its current 20-year retirement plan. It also recommended reforming the health system for military families and younger retirees, replacing much of the current Tricare system with commercial insurance that would improve access to care. The report’s release drew a muted response, with President Barack Obama and other senior leaders thanking the panel and promising to study its findings.
Diagnostics, Tamiflu help Roche full-year sales beat poll
ZURICH (Reuters) – Swiss drugmaker Roche expects sales and profits to grow at a similar pace to last year, after a strong performance by its diagnostics unit and flu drug Tamiflu helped full-year sales beat expectations. Stripping out the impact of currency fluctuations, the world's largest maker of cancer drugs forecast 2015 sales to grow in the low-to-mid single digit range, while core earnings per share (EPS) should grow more than sales. Full-year sales rose 1 percent to 47.5 billion Swiss francs ($52.5 billion), generating flat core earnings per share (EPS) of 14.29 Swiss francs. …
California turkey farm quarantined after bird flu detected
By Theopolis Waters CHICAGO (Reuters) – A California turkey farm has been quarantined after confirmation of the first case of an outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N8 avian influenza strain in the Pacific Northwest and in a commercial flock, the U.S. government said. The news on Saturday came just weeks after China banned U.S. poultry after an outbreak of another strain of bird flu in the Pacific Northwest. In the latest outbreak, Foster Farms said in a statement that it had informed the U.S. Department of Agriculture after detecting the H5N8 strain on a single turkey ranch in Stanislaus County following routine testing. State and government labs confirmed the findings from samples submitted by Foster Farms, which had experienced a spike in bird deaths, according to the USDA.
Added protections for consumer information on health website
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration appears to be making broader changes to protect consumer information on the government's health insurance website, after objections from lawmakers and privacy advocates.
Futures gain after rally, indexes set for strong week
U.S. stock index futures climbed on Friday, adding to a sharp rally in the previous session that returned the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to positive territory for the year and putting major indexes on track to break a three-week streak of declines. Thursday's advance came after the European Central Bank detailed a bond-buying program to boost the region's sagging economy and fight deflation.