Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
If FDA Can't Even Decide If CBD Supplements Are Legal, Do Disgruntled Consumers Have A Standing In Court?
Stat: A Spate Of New Class-Action Lawsuits Threaten The CBD Industry
Since the Food and Drug Administration can’t figure out whether supplements that contain cannabidiol, the marijuana-adjacent oil known as CBD, are legal, can a customer who thought they were buying a legal product demand their money back? A group of remorseful CBD users is suing to test that theory, and it’s going after the companies that put CBD on the map. (Florko, 1/3)
Kaiser Health News: ‘Grade A’ All-American Pot: The Next Big Export?
In a large warehouse, LivWell Enlightened Health feeds its cloned cannabis plants a custom blend of nutrients, sprays them with filtered water and pumps extra carbon dioxide into the air. LivWell releases three types of insects to clear the plants of unwanted pests without the use of toxic pesticides. Every part of the growing process is meticulously documented and evaluated to constantly refine the process. (Hawryluk, 1/3)
NPR: These Women's Health Taboos Are Overdue To Be Busted
As the decade changes and we consider the state of women's health in America, who better to turn to than the authors of five taboo-busting books from 2019 that took on issues that generations of women haven't been talking about, but need to. We asked these outspoken doctors and health advocates to give us their Top 7 messages to women for 2020. Here's what they said. (Vaughn, 1/2)
The Associated Press: Backlog Of Toxic Superfund Clean-Ups Grows Under Trump
The Trump administration has built up the biggest backlog of unfunded toxic Superfund clean-up projects in at least 15 years, nearly triple the number that were stalled for lack of money in the Obama era, according to 2019 figures quietly released by the Environmental Protection Agency over the winter holidays. The accumulation of Superfund projects that are ready to go except for money comes as the Trump administration routinely proposes funding cuts for Superfund and for the EPA in general. (Knickmeyer, Brown and White, 1/3)
Sacramento Bee: Mislabeling Causes Recall Of Clinical Depression Medication
One lot of clinical depression treatment Mirtazapine has been recalled because the tablets in the bottle might be twice as strong as the bottle’s label indicates. Aurobindo’s FDA-posted recall notice says the labels on lot No. 03119002A3, expiration 03/2022, say the 500-count bottles should have 7.5 mg tablets of the medicine also sold under the brand name Remeron. Problem is, the bottles might have 15 mg tablets. (Neal, 1/2)
The Wall Street Journal: Transit Systems Take On Role As Homeless Advocates
Jeffrey Knueppel’s skills include running trains, buses and subways, and helping people who are homeless find jobs and housing. The retired general manager of the Philadelphia region’s transit authority, like a growing number of transit officials around the country, increasingly assumed a social-welfare role in recent years as his agency struggled to cope with rising homelessness. The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority spent more than $1 million partnering with the city of Philadelphia to build an 11,000-square-foot homeless drop-in center at a busy subway station. (Berger, 1/2)
Axios: The U.S. Has 1.1 Million Fewer Kids Than At The Start Of The Decade
There are 1.1 million fewer children living in the U.S. today than there were at the start of the decade, according to an analysis of new Census data by the Brookings Institution's William Frey. The big picture: The adult population grew by 8.8% in the 2010s. in the three previous decades, the child population increased. The past decade marks a pivotal moment as the U.S. ages and, as a result, family life is transformed — especially because Americans are waiting longer to have children and having fewer of them. (Kight, 1/2)
