A compounding pharmacy at the center of a fungal meningitis outbreak last year has agreed to a preliminary settlement that would create a $100 million fund for victims.
The fund will also be used to pay off creditors of the bankrupt New England Compounding Center, attorneys in the case said. A judge will have to approve the plan before it goes into effect.
The nationwide meningitis outbreak was linked to steroid injections distributed by the Massachusetts-based pharmacy.
More than 700 illnesses and 64 deaths in 20 states were blamed on the injections, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. But the CDC noted the deaths are from "all causes among persons who meet the case definition and may not be directly attributed to a fungal infection."
FULL STORYWhile many people may spend Christmas Eve doing last-minute gift shopping, two American astronauts have a more challenging matter to attend to Tuesday.
In orbit more than 200 miles above the planet, Flight Engineers Rick Mastracchio and Mike Hopkins are set to embark on a spacewalk to repair part of the International Space Station's cooling system.
It will be the second Christmas Eve spacewalk in history, according to NASA.
The two engineers will be carrying out the second in a series of expeditions needed to replace a malfunctioning pump, which circulates ammonia through loops outside the station to keep equipment cool.
Shezanne Cassim, the American jailed in the United Arab Emirates and accused of threatening national security for a video parody, was sentenced Monday to one year in prison and a 10,000 UAE Dirham fine (approximately $2,700).
The young American living in the United Arab Emirates has been imprisoned since April, his family says, for posting what was intended to be a funny video on the Internet.
A vigil for a teen who died in police custody turned violent in Durham, North Carolina, with riot police using tear gas and batons to disperse the crowd.
At least six people were arrested at the Thursday night march to protest the death of 17-year-old Jesus Huerta, according to police.
"I could not be more proud of the restraint and professionalism demonstrated by our officers," Durham Police Chief Jose Lopez said in a statement to the media, adding that injuries to those marching were minimized because of his officers' actions.
"There was a march. The peaceful intent did not exist. We used the best practices in law enforcement," he said at a news conference Friday.
Protesters threw bottles and rocks at police officers and vandalized police property, Lopez said, defending his officers' reaction to the vigil.
The Durham Police Department says Huerta died on November 19 from a self-inflicted gunshot while handcuffed in the back of a police cruiser. The teen was being taken to the police station by Officer Samuel Duncan about 3 a.m. for a second-degree trespassing violation.
FULL STORYFaced with a growing backlash from entertainers and others responding to a documentary film claiming mistreatment of whales, SeaWorld bought full-page ads in newspapers nationwide Friday to call the accounts inaccurate and paint its employees as "true animal advocates."
"The truth about SeaWorld is right here in our parks and people," the company said in the ad, which appeared in The New York Times and other papers.
SeaWorld has been battered in recent weeks since the television premiere of the documentary "Blackfish" on CNN.
FULL STORYAll 1,800 students and staff at a southern California high school will be screened for tuberculosis Friday after 45 students tested positive for possible exposure, authorities said.
The Riverside County Department of Public Health and state officials have determined there is a possibility of exposure to other Indio High School students, though "the risk of transmission appears to be moderately low," according to a letter to parents on the school's website.
Students will have to return to school in Indio, California, on Monday to have the test results evaluated, the letter says. Without verification of a current TB testing and results, students won't be allowed to return to school after the holiday break, on January 6, the school said.
FULL STORYIs this man simply expressing his beliefs or spewing bigotry?
Either way, Phil Robertson, the patriarch in A&E's "Duck Dynasty," won't be duck calling on air anytime soon. The network suspended him after slamming gays in a magazine interview.
In the January issue of GQ, Robertson said homosexuality is a sin and puts it in the same category as bestiality and promiscuity.
FULL STORYGeorge Zimmerman can now add "painter" to his resume after the former neighborhood watchman purportedly listed an original painting on eBay.
The 18-by-24-inch canvas features a blue, waving American flag with the words, "God, one nation, with liberty and justice for all" emblazoned across it.
The auction was posted Monday at a starting bid of 99 cents and is scheduled to end Saturday. As of Tuesday night, 108 bids were logged for the painting, ratcheting the price up to $110,100. The next bid would top $110,200.
FULL STORYThis holiday season just got a lot merrier for two insanely lucky people.
Two tickets matched the winning numbers in Tuesday night's $636 million Mega Millions jackpot.
One winning ticket was sold in Atlanta, and the other was sold in San Jose, California, lottery officials said.
The winning numbers were 8, 14, 17, 20 and 39, with a Megaball of 7. Twenty ticket holders will win $1 million after matching all the numbers except for the Megaball.
FULL STORYA gunman and another person were killed during a shooting Tuesday at a medical building at Renown Regional Medical Center, said Tom Robinson of the Reno, Nevada, Police Department.
Two other people were injured and were being treated at a hospital, Robinson said.
The shooter, who carried one weapon, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said.
FULL STORYSomebody might wake up Wednesday a whole lot richer. Heck, some of are going to stay up to see if we're the lucky one or two who hits the Mega Millions.
People who play the lottery love to dream about the things they'd do if they won the big one. Telling the boss off might top your list (not mine, oh no, not mine). Maybe a new mansion and a fancy car and a gasoline-powered turtleneck sweater (Right, Steve Martin?).
But let's think about it. There are a few important things you should do before you go out and blow your winnings.
FULL STORYA collection of often-bootlegged Beatles songs went on sale via iTunes early Tuesday, but the recordings were online only briefly in several countries.
The tracks - expected to be mostly recordings of BBC performances from 1963, along with demos and studio outtakes - appeared at midnight in Britain, only to be pulled down shortly afterward. The digital music giant's sites in Australia and New Zealand no longer featured the collection by Tuesday morning.
A spokesperson for Universal Music Group confirmed the release of "The Beatles Bootleg Recordings 1963" for Tuesday, but provided no additional information.
FULL STORYThe storm that whipped the Northeast over the weekend with six to 16 inches of snow has blown off to Canada, but more snow is on its way - maybe just enough to bring out some of that holiday spirit.
The flakes sweeping across the Midwest and Northeast on Monday and Tuesday aren't expected have the heft of the fast-moving storm that preceded them but are predicted to add a couple of inches to the wintry landscape.
A student opened fire Friday inside a suburban Denver high school, injuring three people before turning the gun on himself, authorities said.
The shooting began after the student entered Arapahoe High School in Centennial with the intention of confronting a specific faculty member, Sheriff Grayson Robinson told reporters.
A giant cross that has stood on a Southern California mountain for decades must be removed because it violates the constitutional separation of church and state, a judge ordered this week.
The order Thursday by U.S. District Judge Larry Burns continues a long legal battle about the 43-foot cross atop Mt. Soledad in San Diego.
Burns ordered that the cross would have to be removed within 90 days. But the cross may be able to stay if the case is appealed, the judge ordered.
FULL STORYA security guard was arrested this week and is accused of stealing two Los Angeles Lakers championship rings and $20,000 in gift cards, police said.
Eddie Monterroso, 23, who worked at a Lakers training facility, was arrested Tuesday outside the facility, the El Segundo Police Department said.
The two championship rings were from the 2009 and 2010 seasons, police said.
FULL STORYIn a plea deal reached between the prosecution and defense, newlywed Jordan Linn Graham, accused of pushing her husband over a Montana cliff, has agreed to plead guilty to second-degree murder in exchange for waiving a first-degree murder charge and a lying to investigators charge, the prosecutor said Thursday.
FULL STORYAmid a tidal wave of negative publicity, a Colorado school system has let a 6-year-old boy return to school and said it won't classify his kissing a girl on the hand as sexual harassment.
The story of first-grader Hunter Yelton made national news and spurred outrage this week after word spread that his school near Colorado Springs suspended him for the kiss and accused him of sexually harassing the girl.
On Wednesday night, CNN affiliate KRDO reported that Canon City Schools Superintendent Robin Gooldy met with Hunter's parents. The superintendent then changed Hunter's disciplinary offense from "sexual harassment" to "misconduct."
FULL STORYIKEA has recalled eight of its children's wall-mounted lamps after one toddler died and another was injured, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said Wednesday.
In each case, the lamp cord was pulled into the crib by the infant, creating the strangulation hazard. Both incidents took place in Europe.
There are eight different models involved in the recall: a blue star, a yellow moon, a pink flower, a white flower, a red heart, green bug, a blue seashell and an orange seahorse.
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