BAN COMPLEX DRUGS FOR CHILDREN, OFFICIAL SAYS
A panel of experts was told by an F.D.A. official that they should consider a ban on multisymptom over-the-counter pediatric cough and cold medicines for children under 6.
“The official, Richard Abate of the Food and Drug Administration, said the array of products combining multiple medicines led some parents to overdose their children accidentally. He also advised that measuring devices commonly included with the products be standardized and made easier to understand.”
“The panel, which the F.D.A. convened, began a two-day meeting Thursday to decide whether over-the-counter pediatric cough and cold medicines should continue to be sold and, if so, for whom. The session comes a week after major manufacturers agreed to withdraw more than a dozen such products labeled for use in infants and babies. If the panel agrees with Mr. Abate’s recommendations, more changes could be in the offing.”
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SCHOOLS IN SEVERAL STATES REPORT STAPH INFECTIONS, AND DEATHS RAISE THE ALARM
It’s showing up all over the country. Students are becoming infected with staph infections and in some cases students have died. School officials are scrambling to secure the health and safety of their students.
“When the football players here at Sherwood High School were not getting the message about washing their uniforms and using only their own jerseys, the school nurse paid a surprise visit to the locker room. She brought along a baseball bat.”
““Don’t make me use this,” the nurse, Jenny Jones, said, pointing out that seven players on the team had already contracted a deadly drug-resistant strain of bacteria this year. “Start washing your hands,” she said. “I mean it.””
“School officials around the country have been scrambling this week to scrub locker rooms, reassure parents and impress upon students the importance of good hygiene. The heightened alarm comes in response to a federal report indicating that the bacteria, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, are responsible for more deaths in the United States each year than AIDS.”
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ATTENTION: STAPH INFECTIONS AT THE GYM
A strain of the bacterium methicill-reistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has spread to gyms and health clubs.
To protect yourself don’t share towels, put a clean towel over workout mats and wipe down equipment with alcohol which most gyms will have in house.
See your doctor if you have signs of skin infection: boils or a localized, painful rash that doesn’t heal.
While this strain is less deadly than the version found in hospitals, it is now the cause of skin related visits to the emergency room.
BUDGET UPDATE
1) Tom Ketchum, the Town’s Commissioner of Buildings, responded to a memo from Council member Bill Kindel concerning new personnel Mr. Ketchum supposedly requested in the 2008 budget.
Mr. Ketchum made it perfectly clear he has not included a request for any new personnel. Supervisor Mohan was responsible for adding a new Engineering position at a salary of $6o,ooo.
2) The leaders of the City of Rochester want all restaurants in the Rochester area to get trans fats out of the cooking process. Great move. In Amherst we can’t even get the fat out of our budget!
BIRTH CONTROL ALLOWED AT MAINE MIDDLE SCHOOL
Reading, ‘riting, rithmetic and reproduction. That’s what middle-schol students are dealing with in the Portland, Me. school system. Their school board voted to allow middle-school students to gain access to prescription birth control medications without notifying parents.
“The proposal, from the Portland Division of Public Health, calls for the independently operated health care center at King Middle School to provide a variety of services to students, including immunizations and physical checkups in addition to birth-control medications and counseling for sexually transmitted diseases, said Lisa Belanger, an administrator for Portland’s student health centers.”
“All but two members of the 12-person committee voted to approve the plan.”
“The school principal, Mike McCarthy, said about 5 of the school’s 500 students had identified themselves as being sexually active.”
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STALLED HEALTH TESTS LEAVE STORM TRAILERS IN LIMBO
We know that the wheels of government turn s - l - o - w - l - y but why, 19 months after the first questions were raised about possible risks from formaldehyde and promised a health study, have none of the 56,000 occupied units have been tested?
“At a Congressional hearing on the trailers in July, R. David Paulison, FEMA’s administrator, said the agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “are scheduled to begin Phase 1 of the study in the Gulf Coast next week.””
“But the first teams did not reach New Orleans and Mississippi until the end of September, and then began only a baseline assessment of unoccupied trailers, laying the groundwork for the full-scale study, said a C.D.C. spokeswoman in Atlanta, Bernadette Burden.”
“One result of the delay in the testing is that the agency has postponed a plan to charge rent on the trailers beginning in March. The rent was intended to encourage people displaced by the hurricanes to move into nonsubsidized housing.”
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SEEING SUGAR’S FUTURE IN FUEL
Sugar growers are looking to make a sweet deal for themselves with the U.S. taxpayers paying for it. Sugar cane and sugar beet growers have been watching Midwestern farmers improve their lot by selling corn to ethanol distilleries. Now they wan a piece of that pie.
“A little-noticed provision in the new farm bill working its way through Congress would oblige the Agriculture Department to buy surplus domestic sugar caused by the expected influx of Mexican sugar next year. Then the government would sell it, most likely at a steep discount, to ethanol producers to add to their fermentation tanks. The Bush administration is fighting the measure.”
“Sugar producers say the cost would be relatively low and the plan would help keep prices at a level they consider fair. As a side benefit, the deal would allow the nation to produce more ethanol to mix with gasoline, displacing some foreign oil, they say.”
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SUPERVISOR MOHAN EXPLAINS WHY HE NEEDS HIS SALARY
Dr. Mohan explained why he doesn’t work for I dollar a day like he promised. His wife had to point out to him they have to pay bills like the mortgage, food and other items.
Supervisor Mohan’s yearly salary is $75,000. As he stated in the Buffalo News, “They need this money to live.”
Checking with the NYS Board of Elections we found that Supervisor Mohan contributed $11,139 to four candidates for postage and printing of campaign materials for the four candidates he supported during the past primary.
This $11,139 dollars was contributed between Sept. 4 – Sept. 28, 2007. I guess if he keeps on contributing the way he has, he will need a pay increase.
IMPROVED NATIONAL RAIL SAFETY BILL PASSED
Congressman Higgins Announces Passage of Improved National Rail Safety Bill
Today Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-27) and his colleagues in the House of Representatives approved the Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act (H.R. 2095), a bill which includes significant progress in national rail safety standards. In April, following a train derailment in Dunkirk and others in Erie County, Congressman Higgins, a member of the House of Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, called for several changes to track safety regulations and inspection procedures.
“This week our Nation takes a substantial step forward in better protecting rail passengers, workers, first responders and residents in rail communities,’ said Congressman Higgins., a co-sponsor of the Railroad Safety Improvement Act. “Immediate investments in inspectors and work toward a long-term safety strategy will lead to better infrastructure, accountability and oversight.”
The Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act contains a number of provisions that heighten existing rail safety standards including:
· Reorganizing the FRA into the Federal Railroad Safety Administration, with safety as the explicit highest priority of the agency;
· Doubling the number of federal safety inspectors to 800 and providing funding for more track inspection equipment;
· Increasing civil and criminal penalties for safety infractions;
· Reducing the number of hours an employee can work and increasing the amount of rest time between shifts.
According to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), over the last 10 years there have been 12 derailments in Chautauqua County and 155 in Erie County. The number of train accidents across America, including collisions and derailments, increased 33 percent from 1994 to 2005, totaling 3,325 in 2005.
A recent audit conducted by the Department of Transportation’s Inspector General found that the Federal Government investigates only 13 percent of the most serious grade crossing collisions that occurred, while the Federal Aviation Administration conducted on-site investigations of 93 percent of accidents.
Last December Congressman Higgins wrote to the Federal Railroad Administration asking that it analyze the safety of bridges in Chautauqua and Erie Counties. In March the FRA responded that it does not have the resources to review every bridge in WNY however, FRA Commissioner Joseph Boardman assured Higgins that FRA would be conducting the best assessment they could across NYS. In May the Congressman participated in a T&I Railroad Subcommittee hearing that helped to develop the rail safety legislation the House approved this week.
SERVICE ACADEMY NOMINATION DEADLINE OF OCTOBER 31
Congressman Higgins Announces Service Academy Nomination Deadline of October 31
Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-27) announced that his office is accepting applications for those interested in being nominated to one of the service academies for the 2008 academic year. To apply, students must submit an application requesting the nomination by October 31, 2007.
Service Academy appointments are made by the President of the United States based on congressional and/or military recommendations. Congressman Higgins will name an Academy Advisory Board to interview all applicants and make recommendations. The Congressman will submit his nominations by January 31, 2008.
Those interested in receiving a nomination from Congressman Higgins can access a sample letter requesting a nomination on the Congressman’s website at: http://higgins.house.gov/SupportingFiles/documents/Higgins_AcademyApp.pdf or submit a letter requesting the nomination along with copies of their high school transcript, report card, and most recent SAT scores to: Congressman Brian Higgins, 726 Exchange St., Suite 601, Buffalo, NY 14210.
Eligible applicants must be unmarried, United States citizens who are between 17 and 23 years old. Nominations will be based on the following standards: character, scholarship, leadership, physical aptitude, medical fitness and motivation.
Last month Congressman Higgins hosted an informational “Academy Night” at Hamburg High School. Dozens of students, parents, and school administrators came out to learn more about the application process directly from academy representatives.
Students must also apply separately to the Academy itself, which can be accessed at: Air Force Academy – www.usafa.edu ; Military Academy – www.usma.edu ; Naval Academy – www.usna.edu ; and Merchant Marine Academy – www.usmma.edu.
For more information please contact Congressman Higgins’ office at 852-3501
