Under attack for response to the pandemic, OSHA plays catch-up
A FairWarning review of OSHA inspections shows that the regulators are mostly responding to deaths or hospitalizations, rather than flagging unsafe conditions.
Presto chango: How flood map revisions allow building in risky areas
Across the country, developers regularly use flood map changes to build in areas vulnerable to flooding, despite warnings from flood experts and community groups.
Patients pay thousands for a back pain treatment promoted by exaggerated claims
A FairWarning investigation found that the claims of success for spinal decompression stretch the truth, enticing patients to pay thousands of dollars for a treatment that has never been proven to live up to its billing.
Safety agency trying to prevent harm to kids from powerful magnets
Over the past decade, thousands of children have been treated at emergency rooms after swallowing high-powered magnets. At least two children in the U.S. have died.
In the cannabis patch, a patchwork of safety standards
Although 35 states, three U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for recreational or medical use, there still are no uniform standards for regulating potentially harmful contaminants in cannabis products.
OSHA blamed for going AWOL during COVID-19
Since the pandemic began, OSHA reports that it has received over 10,000 complaints from workers concerned about a lack of protections against the coronavirus. But six months into the crisis the agency had issued citations to just two employers.
Tenacious citizens take on the plastics industry over an insidious pollutant
More insidious than visible eyesores like discarded bottles and takeout containers, tiny plastic pellets have escaped into waterways by the countless billions as a result of failures by industry.
Big drug companies resist state efforts to cap insulin prices
In the United States, the average list price for insulin tripled from 2002 to 2013 and then doubled from 2012 to 2016, forcing some diabetics to spend as much as $1,200 a month.
Lifting the veil on a controversial e-cigarette company — sort of
In recent months, mystery has surrounded the ownership of a controversial e-cigarette company that has reaped millions of dollars in sales of flavored, kid-friendly nicotine products by exploiting a loophole in federal regulations.
The slow-walking switch to clean energy
In January, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that most new electric power generation in 2020 would come from wind and solar. A few months and a national crisis later, renewable prospects are perhaps shining even brighter, as government projections show that for the first time renewable power is likely to produce more electricity than coal in 2020.
