INSIDER
Biden awards $830 million to toughen nation's infrastructure against climate change
Read full article: Biden awards $830 million to toughen nation's infrastructure against climate changeThe Biden administration is handing out almost $830 million in grants for 80 projects around the country aimed at toughening infrastructure against the extreme weather of climate change.
Consulting firm McKinsey agrees to $78 million settlement with insurers over opioids
Read full article: Consulting firm McKinsey agrees to $78 million settlement with insurers over opioidsConsulting firm McKinsey and Co. has agreed to pay $78 million to settle claims from insurers and health care funds that its marketing work with Purdue Pharma helped fuel an opioid addiction crisis.
Swiss gov't warns about possible lag in fighter jet purchase
Read full article: Swiss gov't warns about possible lag in fighter jet purchaseSwitzerland’s defense department says any delay to a planned multibillion-dollar acquisition of U.S.-made F-35 fighter jets would have “grave consequences” for Swiss security.
Use of OxyContin profits to fight opioids formally approved
Read full article: Use of OxyContin profits to fight opioids formally approvedA judge formally approved a plan Friday to turn OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma into a new company no longer owned by members of the Sackler family and with its profits going to fight the opioid epidemic.
Senators question FDA on work with opioid maker consultant
Read full article: Senators question FDA on work with opioid maker consultantSeveral U.S. senators are questioning the Food and Drug Administration’s work with a consulting firm that helped businesses sell prescription painkillers during the nation’s overdose crisis.
Goodyear acquires Cooper in all-American tire deal
Read full article: Goodyear acquires Cooper in all-American tire dealFILE - In this May 2, 2007 file photo, Cooper tires are on display at Vermont Tire and Service Inc. in Montpelier, Vt. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. is acquiring Cooper tires in a deal valued at $2.5 billion that will combine the two century-old Ohio companies. (AP Photo/Toby Talbot, File)NEW YORK – Two of the biggest remaining American tire companies are joining forces. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. is acquiring Cooper in a deal with an equity value of $2.8 billion that will combine the two century-old Ohio manufacturers. Shareholders of Cooper Tire & Rubber Co., based in Findlay, Ohio, will get $41.75 in cash and about .9 shares of Goodyear common stock per share of Cooper stock. It would give shareholders of Goodyear about 84% of the company and Cooper shareholders with the remaining 16%, the companies said.
AP Source: McKinsey to pay $573M for role in opioid crisis
Read full article: AP Source: McKinsey to pay $573M for role in opioid crisisThe global business consulting firm McKinsey & Company has agreed to a $573 million settlement over its role in the opioid crisis, according to a person with knowledge of the deal. Without naming McKinsey, the attorneys general in at least North Carolina and West Virginia have scheduled announcements for Thursday morning regarding the opioid crisis. Purdue agreed to pay $225 million to the U.S. government. Members of the Sackler family who own the company agreed to pay the same amount in a separate settlement announced the same day. The company and family members reached separate agreements with U.S. Justice Department, both announced Oct. 21, 2020.
Senate report: Opioid industry has paid advocacy groups $65M
Read full article: Senate report: Opioid industry has paid advocacy groups $65MIn a 2016 investigation, The Associated Press and Center for Public Integrity found that opioid makers were backing advocacy groups that supported access to the drugs. For the report released Wednesday, the senators’ staffs examined financial records for 10 advocacy groups that endorsed access to powerful prescription painkillers from 2012 through 2019. Wednesday's report identified a series of connections between the contributions and the work done by the groups. The company, one of the nation’s biggest makers of generic prescription opioids, paid the group $200,000 that year to help support its efforts. The nonprofit has said that it alone determines the group’s advocacy efforts, which include using physical therapy, chiropractic care and yoga as alternatives to opioids for pain treatment after surgery.
Commonwealth Clash between UVA-Virginia Tech postponed, no make-up date set
Read full article: Commonwealth Clash between UVA-Virginia Tech postponed, no make-up date setBLACKSBURG, Va. – The season-opening match-up between Virginia Tech and the University of Virginia has been postposed, according to a release from Tech’s athletic department. A make-up date for the annual competition known as the Commonwealth Clash has not been set. Talks between the Atlantic Coast Conference, UVA and VT officials led to the mutual decision to move the football game between the two schools to a later date stemming from COVID-19 issues at Virginia Tech. Click here to see the online Virginia Tech COVID-19 dashboard. Virginia Tech is now scheduled to open the 2020 football season on Saturday, Sept. 26 against NC State at Lane Stadium.
Fad or future? Telehealth expansion eyed beyond pandemic
Read full article: Fad or future? Telehealth expansion eyed beyond pandemicIn this Aug. 24, 2020, photo Jean Grady smiles as she poses at her home in Westford, Vt. Grady wears an insulin pump to help manage her diabetes. Before the pandemic, Medicare rules required her make regular two-hour, one-way trips to New Hampshire to meet with her doctor to discuss her treatment. Medicare rule changes during the pandemic now makes it possible for her to meet with her doctor remotely, saving her from hours on the road. (AP Photo/Wilson Ring)
Students, alumni clamor to take care of university's cows
Read full article: Students, alumni clamor to take care of university's cowsCows on pasture at the University of Vermont dairy farm eat hay Thursday, July 23, 2020, in Burlington, Vt. When the coronavirus pandemic forced the University of Vermont to close and send its students home, the school worried about who would take care of the cows, normally tended to by students. In no time, dozens of alumni and students of a particular agriculture program clamored to spend their spring and summer caring for the Holsteins. (AP Photo/Lisa Rathke)
Forsooth: COVID-19 brings Shakespeare to Vermont backyards
Read full article: Forsooth: COVID-19 brings Shakespeare to Vermont backyardsJena Necrason, of the Vermont Shakespeare Festival, performs "Shakespeare," in a backyard, Thursday, June 25, 2020, in Burlington, Vt. Jena Necrason of the Vermont Shakespeare Festival throws herself into the role of Helena in A Midsummer Nights Dream, lamenting the vagaries of the heart. So far Necrason, Nagle and about a dozen other actors have performed about 30 times, sometimes in backyards (safely socially distanced from their audiences), via Zoom or even on the phone. The idea is just a single person going up to a yard and ringing the doorbell, wearing a mask, stepping back, at least 6-feet apart, delivering a live Shakespeare monologue or sonnet as a way of connecting in a real, face-to-face, live way, Nagle said. To order up a performance, aspiring audiences go to the Vermont Shakespeare website and choose from among a dozen Shakespeare selections.
New Ben & Jerry's flavor highlights criminal justice reform
Read full article: New Ben & Jerry's flavor highlights criminal justice reformSOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. - Justice ReMix'd is Ben & Jerry's newest flavor, but it's more than just delicious. The ice cream company says it's been created with "a sweet swirl of justice under the lid." The idea is to bring awareness to the justice needed when it comes to systemic racism and criminal justice reform. Ben & Jerry's says a portion of the proceeds from the sale of Justice ReMix'd will go to Advancement Project National Office to support their work in criminal justice reform. The special pints are available in stores and in Ben & Jerry's ice cream shops.