FDA OKs best-selling e-cigarette Vuse Alto, but only in tobacco flavor

WASHINGTON — Federal health officials on Thursday authorized sales of the best-selling e-cigarette in the U.S., Vuse Alto, allowing manufacturer Reynolds American to keep the vaping brand on the market for years to come. The Food and Drug Administration decision only applies to several tobacco-flavored versions of the reusable product, which takes cartridges filled with … Read more

Supreme Court to weigh whether regulators were heavy handed with flavored e-cigarette products

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court took up an e-cigarette case Tuesday, weighing whether the Food and Drug Administration wrongly blocked the marketing of sweet flavored products amid a surge in vaping by young people. Vaping companies argue the FDA unfairly denied more than a million applications to market fruit or candy flavored versions of nicotine-laced … Read more

US miners’ union head calls House Republican effort to block silica dust rule an ‘attack’ on workers

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The head of the national mine workers’ union on Friday condemned what he characterized as an effort by House Republicans to block enforcement of a long-awaited federal rule directed at curbing workers’ exposure to poisonous, deadly rock dust, calling it “a direct attack on the health and safety of coal miners.” United … Read more

US surgeon general declares gun violence a public health emergency

WASHINGTON — The U.S. surgeon general on Tuesday declared gun violence a public health crisis, driven by the fast-growing number of injuries and deaths involving firearms in the country. The advisory issued by Dr. Vivek Murthy, the nation’s top doctor, came as the U.S. grappled with another summer weekend marked by mass shootings that left … Read more

FDA warns maker of Sara Lee and Entenmann’s not to claim foods contain allergens when they don’t

Federal food safety regulators said Tuesday that they have warned a top U.S. bakery to stop using labels that say its products contain potentially dangerous allergens when they don’t. U.S. Food and Drug Administration inspectors found that Bimbo Bakeries USA — which includes brands such as Sara Lee, Oroweat, Thomas’, Entenmann’s and Ball Park buns … Read more

Abortion pill access is unchanged after the Supreme Court’s decision. Here’s what you need to know

WASHINGTON — Access to the abortion pill mifepristone will not change after the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously rejected an effort Thursday by anti-abortion groups to roll back its availability, a win for abortion rights supporters and millions of women in states where abortion is legal. Despite the ruling, women’s access to mifepristone still largely depends … Read more

He was ‘meandering,’ ‘doesn’t know what he’s talking about’

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump failed to impress everyone in a room full of top CEOs Thursday at the Business Roundtable’s quarterly meeting, multiple attendees told CNBC. “Trump doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” said one CEO who was in the room, according to a person who heard the executive speaking. The CEO also said Trump did not … Read more

Senators blast health and law enforcement officials over illegal e-cigarettes used by teens

WASHINGTON — Senators on Wednesday blasted top health and law enforcement officials for not doing more to combat the rise of illegal electronic cigarettes in the U.S., a multibillion-dollar business that has flourished amid haphazard enforcement. Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee expressed frustration and exasperation while questioning officials from the Food and … Read more

FDA and DOJ pledge more cooperation on illegal e-cigarettes ahead of congressional hearing

WASHINGTON — Federal health regulators and law enforcement officials on Monday vowed to work more closely to stop sales of illegal electronic cigarettes, which have grown into a multibillion-dollar business in the U.S. while skirting government oversight. The Food and Drug Administration said it would launch a new task force on this issue with the … Read more

Martha’s Vineyard is about to run out of pot. That’s led to a lawsuit and a scramble by regulators

VINEYARD HAVEN, Mass. — An 81-year-old woman on Martha’s Vineyard drove up to the Island Time dispensary last week seeking her usual order of pot. But owner Geoff Rose had to tell her the cupboard was bare — he’d been forced to temporarily close three weeks earlier after selling every last bud and gummy. Unless … Read more