58.4 F
San Francisco
Wednesday, June 17, 2026
Home Blog Page 2367

Cancer Drug, Lomustine, Price Rises By 1400%

Brent Edward
-
0
Cancer Drug, Lomustine, Price Rises By 1400%

Lomustine is a cancer drug that treats brain tumors, lung cancer, and Hodgkin’s lymphoma. It has been around for nearly 40 years, but it is becoming more expensive after the drug has gone up in price by 1400%.

The drug was previously called CeeNU and was sold from Bristol-Myers Squibb to a Miami-based startup called NextSource Biotechnology.

The drug previously sold for $50 a pill and now costs $768. The company has increased the price of the prescription nine times in less than five years. According to Wall Street Journal, the drug saw a 20% hike in August followed by a 12% hike in November. Prices of other doses of the drug, which is called Gleostine, has also increased.

While the patent for lomustine has expired, currently there is no generic version being produced, and as a result, NextSource has no competitors to discourage it from raising prices.

The Nextsource chief executive told the Journal the company bases its pricing on development costs, fees and the benefit the drug provides to people. It also gives low-income patients and those without health insurance a discount on products.

NextSource is not the only company accused of dramatically increasing prices. In 2015, Martin Shkreli, chief executive of Turing Pharmaceuticals, sparked controversy after increasing the cost of anti-Aids drug Daraprim by more than 5,000 percent from $13.50 to $750 a pill. Many people criticized the price increase including  Infectious Diseases Society of America and the HIV Medicine Association, by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, and soon after that by presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, and Donald Trump.

In December 2015, Shkreli was arrested by the FBI after being indicted on federal charges of securities fraud. He would later resign as CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals and was replaced by the company’s board chairman, Ron Tilles. Shkreli was later convicted of two counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiring to commit securities fraud in August 2015.

Also, Valeant Pharmaceuticals bought the rights to two life-saving heart drugs, Isuprel and Nitropress, and immediately increases prices by 525% and 212%.

California Says Nestlé Has Been Bottling and Selling Water It is Not Allowed to Use

Reginald Edward
-
0
California Says Nestlé Has Been Bottling and Selling Water It is Not Allowed to Use

Officials in California claim Nestlé has been bottling and selling water that it does not have a legal right to use.

Since 2015, officials with the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) have received complains that Nestlé was using water from the San Bernardino National Forest to which the company had no right to claim and then selling the water under the company’s Arrowhead brand.

Nestlé cited a 150-year-old claim by a man named David Noble Smith whose property later became the site of the Arrowhead Springs Hotel. Because in California, water rights are given based on who got there first.

The company points to the business’ commitment to “sourcing water exclusively from carefully selected mountain springs,” which “ensures that every drop of water is revered by Native Americans for its healing powers.”

“Westerners have savoured the natural goodness of Arrowhead water since bottling began in the 1890s,” the company explains on their website.

However, last week the board declared that the company holds no legal right to that water it is draining from the Strawberry Canyon watershed. The committee said the company’s argument to use that water was “not valid for Nestlé’s current appropriative diversion and use of water from the San Bernardino National Forest.”

“A significant portion of the water currently diverted by Nestlé appears to be diverted without a valid basis of right,” the report said.

The board argues that Nestlé has a right to about 26 acre-feet a year, which results in approximately 8.5 million gallons. But, the company averaged around 192 acre-feet a year or nearly 62 million gallons.

The board’s report is not enforceable order. Instead, the board released a series of recommendations for Nestlé in a letter to the business, including the company “cease any unauthorized diversions,” submit a compliance plan and obtain a permit for claiming more water beyond their allowance.

In a statement, Nestlé said “We look forward to cooperating with the SWRCB during the review process and to providing the necessary documents to supplement the SWRCB’s report, including producing information requested from over a century ago, to the extent that it is available,” the statement said.

It is important to point out California’s law does not prohibit a company from bottling the state’s water.

Judge Dismisses Gender Pay Discrimination Lawsuit Against Google

Reginald Edward
-
0
Judge Dismisses Gender Pay Discrimination Lawsuit Against Google

Accusations that Google paid their female employees less than men and given them fewer promotions have been dismissed by a California state judge on Wednesday, according to Reuters.

Superior Court judge Mary Miss said that the lawsuit, which represented all female Google employees in California, was far too vague, and asked the plaintiffs to file a new complaint for the specific groups of women who were affected by pay discrimination. Miss added that two of the three named plaintiffs had not proven they the work they did for Google did was equivalent to the work done by men who had been allegedly been paid more.

After Wiss’ revealed her concerns, a plaintiff lawyer, James Finberg, said he would file a new complaint by early next month.

The lawsuit was filed in September by three women, Kelly Ellis, Holly Pease, and Kelli Wisuri. They argued that they were placed on lower career tracks than their male counterparts and earned less money and bonuses as a result. Ellis, for example, said that she was placed on the front-end team, despite having experience in backend development and the backend team had a higher reputation, earned more money, and was a male-dominated atmosphere. All three women have left Google over the past few years.

The case Ellis v. Google is the first lawsuit that accuses Google business executives of gender bias, even though it is an issue commonly raised against other Silicon Valley tech companies, including the ride-sharing company Uber.

Nearly 20% of NBA Players Have Heart Issues, Study Finds

Brent Edward
-
0

Nearly, 1 in 5 NBA players has heart scans that appear abnormal, according to a new study.

Approximately 20% of today’s basketball stars have abnormal heart scans, according to a new detailed assessment of the NBA’s heart health. Basketball players are 30 times more likely than any other to suffer a sudden cardiac death, and very few 7-foot tall basketball players live to their 90s.

The new research was conducted by NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University and includes data on every player in the NBA in 2014. Now researchers are attempting to understand why.

Researchers found abnormalities on an electrocardiogram for players in their second half of their career, or over the age of 27 years old.

That said, researchers say that these findings do not suggest basketball is dangerous for the heart. In fact, researchers cross-referenced their scans with an ultrasound, and they found these abnormalities were relatively healthy and harmless for the players. Researchers suggest NBA stars receive targeted heart assessment to monitor their health especially as they get older.

“We have shown that players do develop significant changes with exercise,” David Engel, lead author of the study which was published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association.”

“Their hearts become larger, the weight and mass changes, and we found that this is particularly true for the oldest players, aged 27 to 39, compared to the younger ones around 18 to 22. We need to look specifically at why that’s the case.”

Dr. Engle plans to conduct a longitudinal study tracking today’s NBA stars. In particular, he wants to understand why tall African Americans have such dangerous heart risks.

“There are significant differences in African American players compared to Caucasian players, so that is something else we are looking into.”

The study was conducted ten years after the NBA first implemented mandatory ECG screening for players, the most comprehensive cardiac testing and monitoring program of any sport, given the high heart risk.

The study examined around 500 players, 400 of whom were African American, in the pre-season of 2014. In comparison to other athletes, researchers discovered 81 NBA athletes, about 15.6%, had abnormal heart scans.

Dr. Engel has not been able to determine what it is about NBA exercise regimens that increase existing health risks. His goal is to create a better scanning process, so players can continue to play longer than previous generations ever did and to live a long life after their NBA career.

Cinemark Launches A New Kind of Loyalty Program

Reginald Edward
-
0
Cinemark Launches A New Kind of Loyalty Program

MoviePass has been lowering their prices to build up their business, and now theater chain Cinemark is firing back with their subscription service called Cinemark Movie Club. The company will use a different business model than an all-you-can-watch style. It is more of a rewards program that comes with a ticket price lock-in. Members who pay $8.99 per month, will get one 2D movie ticket anytime they want and lets them buy any additional fare at $8.99 throughout the month.

While the program does not sound anything like MoviePass’ deal, which gives members one movie ticket per day for a $9.95 per month flat fee. But Cinemark is hoping the program will compete with the company. Movie Club customers will also be able to upgrade their tickets to other formats including 3D, or their D-Box motion similar chairs. Meanwhile, MoviePass customers will only have access to 2D screenings. Members can also buy their tickets in advance, which is more flexible than MoviePass since MoviePass requires audiences to purchase tickets at the theater.

Movie Club members also receive a 20% discount on concessions. If members do not use their free ticket in a given month, it will roll over on to the next month.

As theatrical movie attendance continues to decrease, theater chains are looking to create new business models to increase revenue. Currently, theater chains are using premium-format screens to entice people to watch movies at theaters instead of at home.

Netflix Writes Danny Masterson Off of ‘The Ranch’ After Sexual Assault Accusations

Jonathan Antonio Browne
-
0
Netflix Writes Danny Masterson Off of ‘The Ranch’ After Sexual Assault Accusations

Netflix says the streaming company will write actor Danny Masterson out of its original series The Ranch after allegations from multiple women say he raped them in the early 2000s. A Netflix statement says Monday was Masterson’s last day on set, and the comedy series will continue without him.

The announcement came after the Huffington Post revealed that one of Masterson’s alleged victims confronted Netflix Andy Yeatman at a children’s soccer game in Los Angeles this weekend and asked why Netflix had not responded to the allegations against Masterson. Netflix’s director of global kids’ content, reportedly responded, “We don’t believe them.” Yeatmen later reportedly said he was not in a position to make any decisions about Masterson’s future on the show.

Four women have accused Masterson of raping them in the early 2000s. Masterson has been under investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department for about a year, according to the Huffington Post. But the cast has stalled, allegedly due to Masterson’s Scientology affiliation. The Huffington Post reports that after one of Masterson’s accusers filed a police report in 2004 saying Masterson raped her while she was “passed out,” “the Church of Scientology intervened and submitted more than 50 affidavits from Scientologists who denied the woman’s account.”

Then in March, journalist Tony Ortega revealed that Masterson was being investigated by the LAPD “at least three alleged cases of rape or sodomy of women who were also Scientologists and who claim they were pressured by the Church of Scientology not to contact police or go public with their accusations.”

The Huffington Post also reports that evidence against Masterson was “overwhelming,” but the case was not moving forward due to the Los Angeles district attorney’s office.

Masterson is known for playing Steven Hyde on That 70’s Show. He has denied the allegations.

YouTube is Now Testing a Stories Feature

Jonathan Antonio Browne
-
0
YouTube is Now Testing a Stories Feature

YouTube is reportedly testing a new feature called “Reels”, which will be similar to the Stories feature you currently see on Snapchat and Instagram.

TechCrunch reports Reels will be given their own tab, which will be separate from the creator’s main list of video’s. YouTube’s reasoning behind this new feature is similar to the arguments put forth by Facebook and Snap. People want to share content without having to curate, edit and publish a traditional YouTube video. Reels are currently being tested among a small group of the company’s creators and the video-streaming platform has not yet revealed when this new feature will be rolled out to the public.

It is important to note that YouTube’s Reels will be different than traditional Stories. Reels will not disappear after 24 hours and YouTube will let users have multiple Reels, each with their own set of videos. That is different from Instagram and Snapchat, where your posts are temporary and part of one set story.

Instagram Stories
via TechCrunch

TechCrunch explains the process of making Reels is as follows: you shoot “a few quick mobile videos of up to 30 seconds each” and can edit them with the filters or by adding music and text. “We’re also bringing creator-focused features like linking to YouTube videos and YouTube-y stickers,” YouTube’s Roy Livne said in a blog post.

This new feature is currently in its initial beta phase and sounds like users will not be forced to view the news-feed of Stories in the same way other apps present the short video functionality. That said, only if users start to “engage with Reels” will YouTube start considering placing them in your main home tab recommendations, according to TechCrunch.

“We’ll be experimenting with a beta version of Reels to learn and improve the product before expanding to more creators,” Livne said.

The Man Behind Trump’s Twitter Deactivation is Revealed (VIDEO)

Jonathan Antonio Browne
-
0
The Man Behind Trump’s Twitter Deactivation is Revealed (VIDEO)

Earlier this month, a Twitter employee temporarily deactivated the Twitter account belonging to President Donald Trump. After initial reports stating that it was an error, Twitter said a contractor had taken action on his last day. Now, after a massive search by journalists, the former employee revealed himself to TechCrunch. Bahtiyar Duysak, a German citizen of Turkish descent, was the man behind Trump’s Twitter account deactivation. He had reportedly worked for Twitter as a contractor with a firm named Pro Unlimited.

Duysak said the move was a “mistake” and he told TechCrunch that he never thought his account would be deactivated. He claimed the deactivation took place due to a series of “coincidences” that took place on his last day. “I had a wild time in America,” Duysak said. “I was tired sometimes. And everyone can do mistakes. I did a mistake.”

Duysak told TechCrunch that a Twitter user had reported Trump for abuse on his last day. “As a final, throwaway gesture, he put the wheels in motion to deactivate it,” TechCrunch reported. “Then he closed his computer and left the building.” Duysak did not explain his motivation or offer any other comments on the president. He said he did not believe that Trump’s account would be deactivated.

Duysak says he does not believe he is under investigation by the FBI, while Twitter has asked him for more information. He said he hopes to live a regular life and said he did not plan to work in the tech field anytime soon. “But I love Twitter,” he told TechCrunch. Duysak added, “And I love America.”

America is Facing a Christmas Tree Shortage

Reginald Edward
-
0
America is Facing a Christmas Tree Shortage

The United States is currently facing  Christmas Tree shortage. According to the National Christmas Tree Association, NCTA, America is facing a tree shortage, which may cause the price for a Christmas tree to rise for consumers.

The cause of the shortage could be traced back to the Great Recession that took place nearly a decade ago. During the economic downturn, tree farmers started cutting back on their crops to save money during the time of decreased demand.

“In those years we were in a recession. Tree sales were down, prices were down, and we weren’t planting as many trees,” Doug Hundley of the NCTA told News 12 Long Island.

A traditional Christmas tree can take up to ten years to reach their full height of 7 to 8 feet, so Americans are now facing the effect of the 2008 economic recession.

Hundley points out that early shoppers should not face any issues with availability and variety of trees, but to expect prices may be higher due to the limited stock. He also adds that many farms tend to lower prices right before Christmas to get rid of their extra trees, so those hoping to pinch a few pennies should wait until the last few weeks of December to purchase a Christmas tree.

Here Are the Several New Features Instagram is Reportedly Working On

Jonathan Antonio Browne
-
0
Here Are the Several New Features Instagram is Reportedly Working On

The Next Web reports Instagram is testing new features including the ability to search for GIFs to add to your Instagram stories. The Next Web reveals that there are a number of new features Instagram appears to be testing including a close friends list to share with only a small group, an automatic archiving option for all of your stories, hashtag and emoji search functions, and the feature to follow hashtags to get top posts and stories on a particular trending topic.

“It looks like Instagram may finally join the GIF party and allow users to search for and add GIFs to their Stories or regular posts. We don’t have a lot of information about this — other than the test version being hideous — but it seems Instagram is tapping Giphy, like you do, to source GIFs in-app.” via

Keep in mind, all of these are just tests, so we may never see these features any time soon.

The new feature The Next Web revealed is pretty interesting. The screenshot shows a repost button that would appear next to the like, comment and send buttons. An official “regard” button will allow users to easily repost photos from friends and other followers. A feature that has been highly requested by Instagram users for several years and with several third-party apps offering this functionality. Ultimately, reshaping is a popular feature found on many social networks including Twitter and Facebook. For example, Facebook offers the ability for users to share a photo, video or any time of the content. Meanwhile, Twitter allows users to retweet.

It is not clear what the button in the screenshot means, while it is certainly likely that Instagram is testing how this new button will play out on the social network. If this does become a new feature, it will surely be a useful one and will surely drive those third-party applications out of business.

1...2,3662,3672,368...2,446Page 2,367 of 2,446

Explore

Trending

Follow us

© All Rights Reserved, Newspaper Theme.