2006 TOP TEN Number 4

Product safety concerns began back in April, when Walgreen Co., the No. 1 U.S. drugstore chain, told its stores to pull all ReNu products from its shelves, along with WalMart and most other major retailers and drug stores. Just days later Bausch & Lomb Inc. said it would stop shipping its ReNu MoistureLoc contact lens solution after some users were diagnosed with serious eye infections. And just two months ago, a major manufacturer of store-brand acetaminophen recalled 11 million bottles of the pain-relieving pills after discovering some were contaminated with metal fragments.

Even illegal drugs were not spared from the controversy. Forty-eight people died after using a dangerous combination of heroin or cocaine that was unkowingly spiked with the painkiller fentanyl (a pain killer with about 80 times the potency of morphine).

The Fall began with an E. Coli scare. The FDA imposed a ban on fresh spinach after Natural Selection's recalled more than 34 different brands of packaged spinach once people fell ill across 20 states after eating the green leafy vegetable. Then, less than a week after the FDA lifted its warning on fresh spinach grown in California's Salinas Valley, a popular brand of lettuce grown there was recalled over concerns about E. coli contamination. The lettuce did not however cause any illnesses.

And no one can forget Taco Bell; where dozens of people across several states were affected by an E. coli outbreak that was first reported in central New Jersey. Eight Taco Bells across the New York-New Jersey area were temporarily closed down for investigation. It took only days to discover that all the Taco Bells implicated were using the same food distributor, but narrowing it down to a precise product became a challenge. At first the fod chain removed all green onions from its menu. But a later report stated that lettuce was the most likely source of an outbreak of E. coli. In the end there were 71 confirmed cases of poisoning linked to Taco Bell and poll done by USA Today indicated that about 1 in 3 frequent fast-food customers say they plan to eat less often at Taco Bell — or not at all — as a result of the chain's recent E. coli outbreak.

2006 TOP TEN Number 5

2006 was a rooler coaster ride of terror threat ups and downs. It all began when seven people were taken into custody after a sweep by law enforcement authorities in connection with an alleged plot against targets that may have included the Sears Tower. No weapons or bomb-making materials were ever found in the searches in the Miami area by FBI and state and local law enforcement officials. The city of Chicago was adamant in assuring its citizens that there was no eminent threat.

In the summer, the US finally got its ground-based interceptor missile defense system operational. And Canadian police halted a real and serious terror threat in and around Toronto. Twelve men and five youths said to have been inspired by al Qaeda were arrested in the operation involving hundreds of officers. The group was planning to commit a series of terrorist attacks against solely Canadian targets in southern Ontario. The group took steps to acquire three tons of ammonium nitrate and other components necessary to create explosive devices.

But the biggest terror threats came in August, when terrorists were in the final stages of planning to blow up planes heading to the United States from Britain. The plans were suggestive of an al Qaeda plot. British police apprehended 21 suspects involved in the plot. The U.S. raised the terror threat level to "severe" for all flights leaving Britain for the United States. Britain raised its alert level to "critical" and involved hiding liquid explosives in carry-on luggage and targeted Continental, United, British Airways and American Airlines flights to New York, Washington and California. Six to 10 flights were targeted. Flights were canceled or delayed at airports across Europe and the United States as the new security measures produced massive lines at airports.

The threats hit home when three men purchased cell phones from the Wal-Mart store on M-81 near the corner of M-24 in Caro. The three men allegedly bought 80 by purchasing them three at time so that an alert wouldn't be triggered by the cash register. They also paid cash. Once apprehended, the suspects had 1000 other cell phones in the van. There was also a bag of receipts showing that someone was in Wisconsin the day before. The Michigan State Police bomb squad says this has all the tell tale signs of using cell phones to detonate bombs. Federal authorities helped with the investigation into the possible terror threat assuming the suspected tarted to be the Mackinac Bridge. The bridge security had already been increased for several months due to elevated terror alert levels. Cameras on the bridge are monitored so that any suspicious packages or activity will be responded to by authorities. One theory is that the men weren't targeting solely the bridge itself but the people on it. The Annual Labor Day Bridge Walk has drawn over 60,000 people in the past few years. When the dust finally cleared, the three Dallas-area men arrested turned out to be well-known to cell phone resalers in the Dallas area. All charges were eventually dropped and the men were free to go.

Massive OTC Pain Pill Recall

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

A major manufacturer of store-brand acetaminophen recalled 11 million bottles of the pain-relieving pills Thursday after discovering some were contaminated with metal fragments.
There were no immediate reports of injuries or illness. Perrigo Co. said it discovered the metal bits during quality-control checks. The company passed 70 million pills through a metal detector and discovered the metal in about 200 caplets. The fragments ranged in size from "microdots" to portions of wire one-third of an inch long.

The recall effects bottles containing various amounts of 500-milligram caplets. Consumers can determine if they are in possession of a recalled product by locating the batch number printed on the container label. Perrigo bills itself as the world's largest manufacturer of store-brand nonprescription drugs. The Allegan, Mich., company did not disclose the chains for which it manufactures the store-brand acetaminophen.

Wal-Mart, Kroger and CVS are among the big chains that sold the painkiller.

Acetaminophen is best known as the drug in products sold under the Tylenol brand but is widely available in generic versions. The recall does not affect Tylenol.

For batch details follow the link below:

http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/perrigo/perrigobatchlist.html

Wal Mart to Sell Generic Drugs for $4 in Florida

from MyWay News

Wal-Mart announced today that it will start a test program in Florida, where it will sell generic prescription drugs for $4 for a 30-day supply. The test will start tomorrow in 65 Tampa Bay-area stores and is to expand to the whole state by January. On average, generic drugs tend to cost between $10 and $30 for a month-long supply.

The world's biggest retailer said that it will test the program in Florida that will make 291 generic drugs available, which are used to treat a variety of condition from allergies to high-blood pressure. It will also be available to the uninsured.

Wal-Mart's recent moves to improve its health care plan include relaxing eligibility requirements for its part-time employees who want health insurance, and extending coverage for the first time to the children of those employees. Part-time employees, who had to work for Wal-Mart for two years to qualify, now have to work at the company for one year. This year, Wal-Mart also expanded a trial run of in-store clinics, aimed at providing lower cost non-emergency health care to the public. Last October, Wal-Mart offered a new lower-premium insurance aimed at getting more of its work force on company plans.

Wal Mart to Eliminate Layaway

from KHBS Ft. Smith, Arizona TV 40

Shoppers with a long list of holiday gifts might want to start saving now because Wal-Mart intends to phase out its layaway department before Christmas. New stores recently opened do not include a layaway department. This Friday will be the last day that any new layaways an be created, and all layaways must be removed by November 19. Wal-Mart reported that the layaway department has not delivered profit in sometime and also noted that only one of its competitors (KMart) has a layaway program.

Gun Goes Off in Wal-Mart Restroom

from WDIV Detroit TV 4

Police in Hudson, N.H., have charged Charles Masterson, 36, with felony reckless conduct after his pistol went off in a Wal-Mart restroom. Masterson said he was pointing his Glock semiautomatic toward the ceiling, just as he had been taught was the safest thing to do when a gun wasn't being used. The precaution backfired when the gun discharged Tuesday night while Masterson was in the bathroom.

Police said the gunshot scared the wits out of a teenage Wal-Mart employee in the next stall. The young Wal-Mart worker told police Masterson put the gun back in his pants and walked out of the bathroom like nothing happened. Wal-Mart employees called police.

Police charged him for putting the teenage employee in danger. He was jailed overnight but released Wednesday after a court appearance