The United States has offered Guatemala health aid, while at the same time it sought to have a lawsuit filed on behalf of Guatemalans injured by controversial medical experiments conducted in the late 1940 dismissed. In motions filed Monday, the U.S. rejected the grounds of the lawsuit, which seeks compensation on behalf Guatemalans who were intentionally infected with syphilis and other sexually transmitted diseases (STD) by U.S. government researchers over 60 years ago.

The federal government seeks dismissal of a 2011 lawsuit filed on behalf of the victims of the Guatemalan medical experiments conducted by U.S. government researchers in 1946-1948. One day after the Department of Justices’ filing seeking dismissal, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), one of the defendants, announced it pledged $1.8 million to assist Guatemalan health authorities to fight STDs and improve research with human subjects. (more…)

Since the attacks on the World Trade Center (WTC) in New York on September 11, many responders have developed a number of diseases and disorders including various cancers and respiratory illnesses. An emerging study reveals key links between WTC responders and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and respiratory problems.

The study appears in the “FirstView” section of Psychological Medicine online. Benjamin J. Luft, M.D., an Edmund D. Pellegrino Professor of Medicine, and Medical Director of Stony Brook’s World Trade Center Health Program led the study in collaboration with Evelyn Bromet, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor at the Departments of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, and Preventive Medicine at Stony Brook University School of Medicine, along with their team, said Medical News Today. (more…)

Arterial plaque is the newest in issues facing Ground Zero responders who appear to have high rates of atherosclerosis (plaque in the arteries). It seems that World Trade Center first responders who experienced the high-level exposure to the toxic cloud that surrounded the New York terror attacks are exhibiting “high-risk” features consistent with atherosclerosis

The Insurance Journal explained that researchers utilized MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) testing to review cardiovascular risk in Ground Zero first responders. (more…)

A punitive class action lawsuit has been filed against Mercedes-Benz manufacturer, Daimler AG, over its high-performance M156 6.2-liter, AMG, V8 engines. The lawsuit claims that the engines are defective and subject to early wear and failure, said Law360. The lawsuit was filed on Monday in New Jersey federal court.

The lawsuit alleges that, in 2008, Cedric Chan of California leased his pre-owned 2007 E63 AMG from a California dealer. Soon after, he complained of “loud, ticking noises from under the hood” and said the car suffered from an oil pressure drop, said Law360. When he brought his E63 in for repairs last year, mechanics found that the left-side camshafts and lifters were prematurely worn and needed replacement, according to Law360. Chan said he paid $4,600 on engine repairs to the left side of his car and, when the right-side engine had problems indicative of premature camshaft and lifter wear in June 2010, he traded the car for a $25,000 loss, said the lawsuit. (more…)

In the years from 1946 through 1948, U.S. medical researchers intentionally infected hundreds of people with sexually transmitted diseases. The program was spearheaded by the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) and involved hundreds from Guatemala. None offered permission to be infected and none of those infected were aware of what was being done.

Earlier this week, the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues released results of its investigation of the Guatemalan research, following a White House briefing on the findings. The Commission has been investigating the Guatemalan experiments, at the order of President Obama. (more…)

A rabbinical court in Montreal’s Orthodox Jewish community urges parents to educate their children on sexual abuse but fails to mention the importance of reporting an incident to the authorities. The Beit Din, a religious court, issued an advisory at the start of the summer-camp season saying parents should teach their children about inappropriate touching performed by another child, relative or an authority figure,
reported PostMedia News.

The religious court noted that parents should explain to their children that reporting
sexual abuse to a parent or rabbi is an obligation, but omitted any mention of making a report to police. Members of the Orthodox community consider this notice a sign of progress for a community that is accused of overlooking the topic of sexual abuse, but others feel it’s just more of the same. (more…)

According to a leading American Orthodox rabbi, child sexual abuse should be reported to rabbis and not the police. Shmuel Kamenetsky, the vice president of Agudath Israel of America’s Supreme Council of Rabbinic Ages, addressed a crowd in Brooklyn on July 12, and stated that sexual abuse of a child is a matter that should be reported to a rabbi, who would then determine if the police should be contacted.

Kamenetsky’s speech was made as the search for 8-year-old Lieby Kletzky was being conducted. The boy’s dismembered body was found the following day in a dumpster and in the apartment of Levi Aron, reported Jewish & Israel News. On July 21, Aron was indicted for the murder of Kletzky. (more…)

The FBI has opened an investigation into whether News Corp. hacked into the telephones of victims and their families of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, reported the LA Times.

U.S. Representative Peter King (R-NY), chairman of the House of Homeland Security Committee, sent a letter to the FBI asking that they investigation whether Rupert Murdoch’s company used bribery and illegal wiretapping to access the voice mails of Sept. 11 victims. (more…)

In a 5-4 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a U.S. appeals court decision which allowed generic drug companies to be sued under state law over allegations that they failed to provide adequate label warnings.

The justices were presented with the interesting issue of whether makers of generic drugs, whose products must mimic the warning labels of the corresponding brand-name drugs and who cannot alter those labels, should also be sued under state law for failing to warn users about the risks posed by their products,” reported the New York Times. (more…)

Life Partners Holdings Inc. announced last week the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission intends to file civil claims against the company. The company plunged 11 percent in New York trading after the lawsuit notice was made public. The civil action will encompass the company’s marketing practices, specifically the firm’s methodology for estimating life expectancies for life settlements sold to investors.

Life settlements, also referred to as viatical settlements, are the sale of an existing life insurance policy to an investor. Companies similar to Life Partners will arrange to purchase life insurance policies from individuals and sell interest to investors. The investor pays a required premium on the policy and collects proceeds upon the insured’s death. (more…)