Author: Justin Lane

The Post-Finasteride Syndrome Foundation has announced that it will fund the second major clinical study of post-finasteride syndrome (PFS) through the Baylor College of Medicine. Finasteride, brand-name Propecia and Proscar, are suspected of causing sexual dysfunction in men. The drug is intended to treat enlarged prostates (Proscar) and may be used to treat baldness (Propecia). It is common for new risks to discovered by the FDA or independent entities after a drug has been available to the public for a considerable period of time, risks possibly known by the manufacturer since conception. Recently, Tylenol (acetaminophen) has been the subject...

Below are Ring of Fire’s top stories from the past week. Video Rewind Department of Justice Asks Court to Grant Bush Admins Immunity for Iraq War In a series of documents filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, the Obama administration’s Department of Justice effectively asked the Court to grant immunity to former President George W. Bush, former Vice-President Richard B. Cheney, former Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, former National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, former Secretary of State Colin Powell, and former Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz for their actions during...

Tylenol manufacturer Johnson & Johnson has recently updated the cap on bottles of Tylenol to read “CONTAINS ACETAMINOPHEN / ALWAYS READ THE LABEL”. The updated cap will begin appearing on Extra Strength Tylenol this October and other versions of Tylenol soon after. Updating the label is a step in the right direction for the company as lawsuits have been mounting against the manufacturer for failing to properly warn users about the potential dangers associated with acetaminophen. Acetaminophen is a painkiller used in Tylenol that can accumulate in the body and causes acute liver damage, potentially failure, if ingested in...

Yesterday, it was announced that a $61 million settlement was unsealed between the Department of Justice and RPM International and its subsidiary, Tremco, Inc., in Medina, Ohio for false claims it submitted for payment to the government between 2002 and 2011. Often, due to the precise procedure of false claims lawsuits, such enforcement actions go without public notice because they are filed “under seal”. The act of sealing a lawsuit protects the sensitive information (e.g. the identity of the relator/whistleblower) and it can be years after a lawsuit is resolved before the case is unsealed. “The False Claims Act...

It doesn’t look like the Texas-based chain of schools under ATI Enterprises Incorporated (ATI) have much of a lesson to offer its students regarding honesty and integrity. The education system has agreed to pay the United States government $3.7 million to resolve allegations that it intentionally mislead the government into believing that it met requirements for student aid. According to the Department of Justice’s release on the matter, the Texas group knowingly made false claims and misrepresentations to the Texas Workforce Commission and to the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges about job placement statistics. These statistics are...