Make mine a Valium-Prozac cocktail, please

Oct 20, 2004 by Guest Blogger

Ever hear of the "New Freedom Commission on Mental Health"? The public health community and a member of Congress are criticizing an administration plan for mandatory universal mental health screenings as a boon for the pharmaceutical industry. Here's a glimpse at Inter Press Service's coverage: The plan highlights the importance of "state-of-the art medications," though a scandal has erupted recently regarding the safety and effectiveness of the main types of drugs in question, particularly antidepressants. Deadly side effects of these drugs have already claimed numerous lives.

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GAO Report Calls for "Prompt and Complete" Recalls

Oct 20, 2004 by Guest Blogger

The GAO released a report today detailing the failures of FDA and USDA to protect our food supply. As described in the report USDA and FDA Need to Better Ensure Prompt and Complete Recalls of Potentially Unsafe Food, the GAO investigation discovered that the agencies were often slow to respond to indications of contamination in the food supply, allowing contaminated food to reach the shelves and consumers before a recall. The GAO blamed the failures in the food safety system in part on the lack of recall authority available to FDA and USDA.

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So much for wilderness

Oct 20, 2004 by Guest Blogger

The Heritage Forests Campaign, an environmental coalition, is sounding the alarm on the administration's mishandling of the still-wild, roadless areas of our National Forests: "In recent years, the Forest Service has flagrantly abused its discretion by misinterpreting the Eastern Wilderness Act and incorrectly applying ad hoc guidelines," Furnish writes in the report, titled Eastern Roadless Areas Under Threat. "This has resulted in an inconsistent approach (and) raised questions about the agency's credibility and stewardship."

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Watcher: October 18th, 2004

Oct 19, 2004 by Guest Blogger

Federal Budget

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Release: nonprofitadvocacy.org Calls for Congressional Hearings on Need for 527 Bill

An alliance of five national organizations supporting the rights of nonprofit organizations today called for congressional hearings on the need to limit soft money contributions to "527" independent political committees. The complete statement follows.

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Politicized science and global warming

Oct 19, 2004 by Guest Blogger

There's a good thorough account in today's N.Y. Times on the Bush administration's tendencies to dirty up the science by imposing partisan litmus tests on scientists selected for advisory committees and by picking and choosing science (or, in some case, non-scientific economics analyses) depending on the deregulatory outcome desired.

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Latest issue of The Watcher

Oct 19, 2004 by Guest Blogger

Be sure to catch the latest issue of our biweekly newsletter, The Watcher. Regulatory policy articles include the following:
  • Gaps in Homeland Security Benefit Bush Campaign Funders
  • Administration Continues to Suppress, Weaken Science
  • Recent Studies Show Lack of Enforcement of Environmental Laws
  • Partisan Patterns Detected in Civil Rights, Environment Decisions

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Lawmakers Ask for Stronger Salmon Recovery Measures

Oct 19, 2004 by Guest Blogger

The National Marine Fisheries Service issued a draft biological opinion last month stating that hydropower dams on the river will not threaten endangered salmon and steelhead populations, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Now 102 lawmakers have sent a letter to President Bush requesting that the draft be rewritten.

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RegWatch Roundup

If you haven't been reading RegWatch, our new regulatory policy weblog, here's a look at what you've been missing. Regulatory Policy Failures So what's the federal government doing to protect us from bio-terrorism?
  • Weakening needed rules, after meeting with the food industry!
  • Promoting a Bioshield program that is inadequate to the task!
But surely our nuclear facilities are being secured against terrorism threats. Right?

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    Senate Pushes Through Corporate Tax Bill Over Holiday Weekend

    The Senate commemorated the Columbus holiday Oct. 11 by holding a special session to pass the corporate tax bill, also known as the FSC/ETI bill. The previous week the House had passed the bill, which was designed to remove certain corporate tax subsidies on exports which had been ruled illegal by the World Trade Organization two years ago. The new tax breaks hit the nation at a time when corporate tax revenue has dropped to a historic low -- and the federal deficit has climbed to an all-time high. Last week, the Congressional Budget Office reported the FY 2004 federal deficit hit a record $413 billion.

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