If you are a Chinese drywall homeowner whose mortgage is insured by  the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the Department of Housing and Urban Development may be able to help you.

The FHA is reminding its approved lenders that they are to offer special forbearance for borrowers confronted with the sudden effects of damaging drywall products in their homes including the financial hardship associated with related home repairs.  Lenders also are being encouraged not to charge late fees and to give the homeowners time to make up past-due payments.  This aid  only available to homeowners whose  mortgages are FHA- insured and who may qualify for help under an existing mortgage-forbearance program intended to prevent foreclosures. (more…)

Laws to require cancer warnings on cell phones are being proposed around the country.

According to the Associated Press, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom is a pushing  to make his city  the first in the nation to require cell phone cancer warnings.  His proposal would require manufacturers to display the electromagnetic radiation absorption rate level next to each phone in print at least as big as the price. (more…)

A recall has been issued for 447,000 Safety 1st, Cosco, Eddie Bauer and Disney branded infant car seats made by Dorel Juvenile Group Inc.

According to the recall notice, when used as an infant carrier, the child restraint handle to the car seat can loosen and come off, posing a fall hazard to infants. Dorel has received 77 reports of the child restraint handle fully or partially coming off the car seat/carrier resulting in at least three injuries to infants including bumps, bruises and a head injury. (more…)

A Danish radiologist says GE Healthcare is using libel laws in the United Kingdom to stop his criticism of Omniscan.

For now, because of the libel claim against him, The Guardian says Henrick Thomsen has stopped lecturing in the UK. The doctor also claims patients in England are  being put at serious risk because he and other scientists are prevented from sharing their knowledge as a result of the way the libel courts in the country operate. (more…)

Toy dart guns blamed for the death of a child are being recalled today.  According to the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC), this recall involves  “Action Team” Toy Dart Gun Sets imported by OKK Trading Inc., of Los Angeles, Calif.

The CPSC and OKK Trading have received one report of the November 2007 death of an 8-year-old boy in Port Arthur, Texas. The child reportedly was chewing on a toy dart that came with the set when he inadvertently swallowed it and it became lodged in his throat blocking his ability to breathe. (more…)

According to a New York Times article, some vaccine advisors at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) had rather cozy relationships with the medical industry.

According to the Times, a report compiled by Daniel R. Levinson, the inspector general of the Department of Health and Human Services, found that experts who served on CDC flu and cervical cancer vaccine advisory panels in 2007  had potential conflicts that were never resolved.  Many of the advisors identified  in the report  “either a job or a grant from a company or other entity whose interests were affected by the committees’ discussions, and a considerable number also owned stock in such companies,” the Times said. (more…)

The Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) is issuing yet another urgent warning about recalled Simplicity drop-side cribs.  According to the agency, these death traps have now killed a total of 11 children.  Previously, three deaths had been blamed on the Simplicity cribs.

The CPSC is  reminding parents and caregivers to check their cribs to see if they have a recalled Simplicity drop side crib. Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled cribs and find an alternative, safe sleeping environment for their baby. Consumers should not attempt to fix the cribs. Consumers can also check with the retailer where purchased to receive a remedy. (more…)

With The Acreage cancer cluster study now in its second phase, it has been learned that two more children in the Florida community have been diagnosed with brain tumors.

According to The Miami Herald, the latest brain tumor victims in The Acreage are a 13-year-old girl and a boy the same age.  The girl, who had been suffering from headaches, had a tumor removed before Thanksgiving.  The boy’s tumor was discovered after he suffered a seizure last Wednesday, and his tumor was removed on Friday.  Both families are still waiting results of pathology reports. (more…)

It’s no secret that extracting natural gas from shale through a process called hydraulic fracturing can cause serious environmental harm.  But a recent ProPublica article says environmental risks could be mitigated if drillers adopted safer methods.  Sadly, they’ve been slow to do so.

Shale gas drilling involves injecting water, sand, and a cocktail of chemicals – that may include toxins such as benzene, glycol-ethers, toluene, 2-(2-methoxyethoxy) ethanol, and nonylphenols – at high pressure into rock formations thousands of feet below the surface. This opens existing fractures in the rock and allows gas to rise through the wells. The practice makes drilling possible in areas that 10 to 20 years ago would not have been profitable. (more…)

Another lawsuit has been filed over a CT scan radiation overdose.  The class action lawsuit, which was filed in federal court in Alabama, names GE Healthcare as the defendant.

In October, the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) announced it was investigating CT scan overdoses. The FDA probe was launched after Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles confirmed that 206 patients mistakenly received eight times the regular dose of radiation during CT brain scans. Just last week, the FDA released interim results of its investigation. In addition to the cases at Cedars-Sinai, the agency identified at least 50 additional patients who were exposed to excess radiation of up to eight times the expected level during their CT brain scans. (more…)