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ANOTHER THANKSGIVING MARRED BY ROMAINE RECALL. The more things change the more they romaine the same.
For the second Thanksgiving season in a row, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned the public to avoid eating romaine because it may have been infected by E. coli. While last year government officials issued an unusually blanket warning to the public to avoid all romaine, this year’s warning is more narrow: Officials have said people should specifically avoid romaine lettuce that comes from Salinas Valley, California.
As of Friday, 40 people in 16 states were infected as a result of eating the lettuce. The majority of illnesses were severe, with at least 28 hospitalizations, but no deaths.
The E. coli infestation is similar to the outbreak last year, and the strain that is circulating can cause kidney failure. Thanksgiving already makes the CDC nervous about food poisoning from improper food prep. Sometimes food poisoning doesn’t set in for several days, making it difficult to figure out what part of the meal might have gone bad.
For the romaine, it’s not yet clear what the source is. Other than the CDC, the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration work together on food safety. The FDA specifically works with states to try to find out which brand, grower, supplier, or distributor might be responsible for the outbreak.
Scott Gottlieb, the former FDA commissioner, laid out in a tweet how complicated it could be for scientists to track down the cause.
“Another Thanksgiving another romaine recall,” Gottlieb said. “The specific E. coli strain is exactly the same one that caused last year’s outbreak. We must ask if there are systemic problems with open water sources, nearby cattle crazing, or susceptibility of the product itself.”
The CDC doesn’t break down illnesses that happen specifically around Thanksgiving, but it estimates that each year 48 million people get sick from foodborne illnesses, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die.
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TRUMP’S LATEST THINKING ON VAPING: President Trump engaged in a new line of thinking about vaping and the possibility of a flavor ban in a meeting Friday with industry officials and activists, suggesting the possibility that regulation could lead to dangerous illicit vaping. “You watch prohibition, you look with the alcohol, you look at cigarettes… Instead of Reynolds or Juul, or, you know, legitimate companies, good companies making something that’s safe, they’re going to be selling stuff on a street corner that could be horrible,” he said.
The general consensus among vaping representatives at the meeting, like Juul CEO K.C. Crosthwaite, NJOY CEO Ryan Nivakoff, and Vapor Technology Association executive director Tony Abboud was that the minimum purchasing age nationwide should be 21, not 18. After about an hour of tobacco opponents and vaping advocates talking over one another, straddling the line between a spirited debate and a heated argument, the press was ushered out. Trump did say, however: “We’ll be announcing very soon… but we’re going to continue this meeting for a little while.”
TRUMP RAISES EXPECTATIONS FOR DRUG IMPORTATION RULE: In case you missed it, Trump raised expectations Friday that a rule for importing drugs from Canada, first promised by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar in July, is coming soon.
RBG IS ‘DOING WELL’ AFTER WEEKEND AT THE HOSPITAL: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was discharged from Johns Hopkins Hospital Sunday having experienced chills and fever on Friday. She was given intravenous antibiotics, and SCOTUS spokesperson Kathleen Arberg said “her symptoms have abated” and she is doing well.
The Rundown
The Wall Street Journal Walter Reed failed to examine almost 2,000 CT scans
The Oklahoman Report: 476 older Oklahomans died prematurely because of Medicaid non-expansion
Bloomberg Duke University was built on a cigarette fortune. Now it may ban vaping on its campus
Kaiser Health News Last-minute loophole could undermine Texas law against surprise medical bills
WBUR Regulators allege Christian-based health care provider broke state, federal rules
The New York Times 2020 Democrats unapologetically support abortion rights, Times survey reports
Calendar
MONDAY | Nov. 25
Congress in recess.
THURSDAY | Nov. 28
Thanksgiving holiday.
