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| Lufthansa eyes former Deutsche Telekom CEO for top job: reports Monday, Jan 27, 2014 11:07 PM PST  German airline Lufthansa has contacted the former chief executive of Deutsche Telekom in its hunt for a new chief executive, German media reported on Tuesday. Rene Obermann, former CEO of Deutsche Telekom, had taken up the top job at Dutch cable operator Ziggo only this month, but has found himself back on the job market after the operator on Monday agreed a takeover offer from U.S. firm Liberty Global . Lufthansa chairman Wolfgang Mayrhuber is interested in Obermann and the supervisory board has been in contact with the manager, Handelsblatt and Rheinische Post newspapers reported on Tuesday, citing company sources. Germany's largest airline has been looking for a new CEO since September, when it was announced that Christoph Franz would leave at the end of May 2014 to become chairman at Swiss pharmaceuticals company Roche . Full Story | Top |
| Obama to lay out go-it-alone approach in big speech Monday, Jan 27, 2014 10:01 PM PST  By Steve Holland WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will lay out a strategy for getting around a divided Congress and boosting middle-class prosperity on Tuesday in a State of the Union speech that reflects some scaled-back legislative ambitions after a difficult year. Obama will make clear in his 9 p.m. EST address that he is willing to bypass U.S. lawmakers and go it alone in some areas by announcing a series of executive actions that do not require congressional approval. White House officials said Obama will announce new executive actions on retirement security and job training to help middle-class workers expand economic opportunity. "In this year of action, the president will seek out as many opportunities as possible to work with Congress in a bipartisan way. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. securities class-action suits rise, big Supreme Court case looms Monday, Jan 27, 2014 09:10 PM PST  Investors are pursuing more lawsuits accusing companies of fraud, according to a new study, but filings may plunge if the U.S. Supreme Court decides soon to remake the legal landscape. Plaintiffs filed 166 federal securities lawsuits seeking class-action status in 2013, up 9 percent from 152 in 2012, according to data released Tuesday by Cornerstone Research and the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse. The Supreme Court, in a case involving Halliburton Co to be argued on March 5, could accelerate that decline as it reexamines a 1988 precedent that made it easier to pursue class actions against companies. A narrowing or overruling of Basic could have "seismic" implications, said Joseph Grundfest, a Stanford law professor who works with Cornerstone and a former commissioner of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, in an interview. Full Story | Top |
| Drug critic slams FDA over antibiotic oversight in meat production Monday, Jan 27, 2014 08:40 PM PST The United States Food and Drug Administration allowed 18 animal drugs to stay on the market even after an agency review found the drugs posed a "high risk" of exposing humans to antibiotic-resistant bacteria through food supply, according to a study released Monday by the Natural Resources Defense Council. The study by the NRDC, a non-governmental group that criticizes the widespread use of drugs in the meat industry, is the latest salvo in the national debate over the long-standing practice of antibiotic use in meat production. Agribusinesses say animal drugs help increase production and keep prices low for U.S. consumers, while consumer advocates and some scientists raise concerns over antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The FDA stirred the debate late last year when it unveiled guidelines for drug makers and agricultural companies to voluntarily phase out antibiotic use as a growth enhancer in livestock. Full Story | Top |
| Over 600 passengers, crew fall ill on Royal Caribbean cruise Monday, Jan 27, 2014 07:25 PM PST (Reuters) - The number of passengers and crew who fell ill aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship climbed to more than 600 on Monday, many of them vomiting and suffering diarrhea. The updated sick count aboard the Explorer of the Seas, which cut short its Caribbean cruise and was expected to dock in New Jersey on Wednesday, is more than double the 300 originally thought to have been felled by gastrointestinal illness, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Among those sick were some of the onboard entertainers, which caused shows to be canceled, passengers said. Another ill passenger, Arnee Dodd of Connecticut, wrote on Twitter: "I've been sick and quarantined... Everything I touch goes in a biohazard bag." Passenger Brittany Ann Schneider, who did not get sick, told Reuters that for two to four days she saw few people. Full Story | Top |
| 'Marlboro Man' who later warned against smoking dies of lung disease Monday, Jan 27, 2014 06:09 PM PST By Steve Gorman LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Eric Lawson, one of several actors who depicted the "Marlboro Man" cowboy in a long-running series of cigarette ads for Philip Morris and later appeared in an anti-tobacco message for the American Cancer Society, has died of lung disease. He was 72, and died at his home in the central California town of San Luis Obispo of respiratory failure due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which the U.S. surgeon general has linked to smoking. Full Story | Top |
| Bid to provide condoms to California prison inmates clears hurdle Monday, Jan 27, 2014 05:49 PM PST By Sharon Bernstein SACRAMENTO, California (Reuters) - Condoms could eventually be distributed to California prison inmates under a bill passed in the Democratic-controlled state Assembly on Monday, setting the stage for potential pushback from Governor Jerry Brown, who vetoed a similar measure last fall. The bill, which must still be passed by the state Senate, directs California to develop a five-year plan to hand out condoms in the state prison system, where existing law already criminalizes sex acts between inmates, regardless of consent. Opponents of the plan have predicted prisoners in the overcrowded system could use condoms to store contraband rather than for safe sex, while backers say it could help cut down on high rates of sexually transmitted diseases among inmates. "Sexually transmitted disease is a tragic reality of life in prison," said Oakland Democratic Assemblyman Rob Bonta, who introduced the bill. Full Story | Top |
| Mental health patient shot dead by South Carolina probation agent Monday, Jan 27, 2014 04:46 PM PST By Harriet McLeod CHARLESTON, South Carolina (Reuters) - A patient brought to a mental health facility in South Carolina by a state agent on Monday morning was shot dead after the patient became loud and argumentative, the state mental health department said in a statement. While the patient was being seen by a psychiatrist at the mental health center in the town of Chesterfield, the agent with the state's Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services was seated outside the office door, the department said. The clinic, Tri-County Community Mental Health Center, is operated by the South Carolina Department of Mental Health and treats adults and children in three South Carolina upstate counties. The psychiatrist reported that he was physically assaulted by the patient but was not seriously injured, LaPointe said. Full Story | Top |
| Analysis: Florida Democrats may get buzz from medical marijuana Monday, Jan 27, 2014 04:34 PM PST  By David Adams and Zachary Fagenson MIAMI (Reuters) - A November ballot measure to legalize marijuana for medicinal use in Florida could have a decidedly political side effect. The ballot proposal, which was approved by Florida's Supreme Court on Monday, is so popular it could help Democrats unseat the state's Republican Governor, Rick Scott, who is up for re-election in November. Democrats believe it could energize their base in a midterm electoral season that generally results in low turn out, while polls show even a majority of Florida Republicans support medical marijuana use. Scott opposes the ballot initiative and is trailing in polls to his main challenger, former governor Charlie Crist, who favors legalization. Full Story | Top |
| Florida's top court puts medical marijuana initiative on November ballot Monday, Jan 27, 2014 03:41 PM PST  By Bill Cotterell TALLAHASSEE, Florida (Reuters) - Florida voters will decide in November whether to legalize medical marijuana after the state Supreme Court on Monday approved an initiative to put the measure on the ballot. Florida's Republican Party leadership had opposed the wording of the ballot measure, saying it was too vague and misleading and that it would allow almost anyone to obtain marijuana for the slightest medical complaint. A bitterly divided state Supreme Court voted 4-3 on Monday to allow the medical marijuana initiative to go on the November ballot, saying it met all legal requirements. If the petition is backed by 60 percent of voters in November, Florida would become the first Southern U.S. state to approve marijuana for medical use, joining 20 other states. Full Story | Top |
| Over 600 passengers and crew fall ill on Royal Caribbean cruise Monday, Jan 27, 2014 03:29 PM PST (Reuters) - The number of passengers and crew who fell ill aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship climbed to more than 600 on Monday, many vomiting and using biohazard bags for anything they touch. The updated sick count aboard the Explorer of the Seas, which cut short its Caribbean cruise and was expected to dock in New Jersey on Wednesday, is more than double the 300 originally thought to have been felled by gastrointestinal illness, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Among those sick with vomiting and diarrhea were some of the onboard entertainers, which caused shows to be canceled, passengers said. "I started with upset stomach and vomiting, and that lasted all night and into the morning," passenger Joseph Angelillo told CNN in a telephone interview. Full Story | Top |
| NFL figures say league should keep open mind on medical marijuana Monday, Jan 27, 2014 02:51 PM PST  By Scott Malone NEW YORK (Reuters) - The coach of the Super Bowl-bound Seattle Seahawks on Monday echoed the NFL commissioner's assertion that the league should not rule out allowing players to use medical marijuana to manage pain, if medical science supports the idea. Seahawks coach Pete Carroll told reporters the National Football League should be open to use of the drug, currently banned by its rules, if doctors broadly come around to the idea. "We have to explore and find ways to make our game a better game and take care of our players in whatever way possible," Carroll told reporters as his team prepared for Sunday's championship game against the Denver Broncos. "Regardless of what other stigmas might be involved, we have to do this because the world of medicine is doing this." Carroll's words followed comments by Commissioner Roger Goodell last week that the league would follow the lead of doctors in determining whether to drop its opposition to players' use of the drug. Full Story | Top |
| DDT exposure more common in people with Alzheimer's: study Monday, Jan 27, 2014 02:35 PM PST By Genevra Pittman NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - People who had been exposed to the pesticide DDT were more likely to have Alzheimer's disease than those with no traces of the chemical in their blood, researchers found in a new study. But in the complex picture of Alzheimer's - which has many potential genetic and lifestyle contributors - this may be one more piece to consider, according to lead author Jason Richardson. That's not what we're saying here," said Richardson, from the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in Piscataway, New Jersey. In a prior small study, Richardson and colleagues had found levels of DDE - a broken-down form of DDT - were higher than usual in the blood of people with Alzheimer's disease. Full Story | Top |
| Teen sets himself on fire in suburban Denver high school Monday, Jan 27, 2014 01:42 PM PST  By Keith Coffman WESTMINSTER, Colo. (Reuters) - A 16-year-old student set himself on fire in the cafeteria of a high school in a Denver suburb on Monday in front of horrified classmates in what police said was an apparent suicide attempt. Investigators were examining a note the teenager posted online before the incident at Standley Lake High School in Westminster, Colorado, a police spokeswoman said. The youth, who was not publicly identified, walked into the cafeteria around 7 a.m. (1400 GMT) and lit himself on fire, before a school custodian grabbed a fire extinguisher and quickly doused the flames, police said in a statement. A teacher who was also in the cafeteria suffered a minor cut to her hand during the incident when she broke glass to get at the extinguisher, police spokeswoman Cheri Spottke said. Full Story | Top |
| Kids' vitamins often surpass daily recommendations Monday, Jan 27, 2014 01:37 PM PST By Andrew M. Seaman NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Vitamin supplements marketed for infants and children often contain more than the recommended amount of individual vitamins, according to a new study. Researchers found that in all but one case, the average vitamin content of those supplements exceeded what's recommended. "What we did is compare what's on the labels for (children's vitamins) to the recommended daily allowance or adequate intake," Michael Madden told Reuters Health. Madden is the study's lead author from the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Erie, Pennsylvania. Full Story | Top |
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