Boots staff under pressure to milk public money, says pharmacists’ union
UK pharmacy chain Boots has been accused of boosting its profits by forcing staff to abuse an NHS scheme intended to give patients professional advice on health and diet. A Guardian investigation found managers were directing their chemists to provide medicine-use reviews (MUR) to customers who didn’t need them. One pharmacist said he was directed by his managers to carry out an MUR on a man with dementia, and on himself. To prevent any milking of the MUR system, the NHS limits each pharmacy to a maximum of 400. The Guardian has found evidence that Boots staff are being told to take that number as a target for individual stores to hit. If a pharmacy carries out the maximum 400 MURs, it will earn £11,200. The Guardian has also seen a recent unpublished survey by the Pharmacists’ Defence Association where a number volunteered complaints about being “pressurised into conducting MURs whether or not patients are eligible to receive the service”. (Guardian)
Consumers
Study: Fast-food eaters have more industrial chemicals in their bodies
People who reported eating fast food in the last 24 hours had elevated levels of some industrial chemicals in their bodies, according to a new analysis of US nutrition surveys. The study is the first to look at how fast food may expose the public to certain chemicals called phthalates, which are common in cosmetics, soap, food packaging, flooring, window blinds, and other consumer products. Research in rats has shown that they can disrupt the male reproductive system, and there is evidence for similar effects in humans. The American Chemistry Council says phthalates have been thoroughly studied, and those used in commercial products “do not pose a risk to human health at typical exposure levels.” However, Japan banned vinyl gloves in food preparation over concerns about phthalates, and the European Union has limited the use of the chemicals in food products and toys. Some phthalates were restricted in children’s toys in the US by a 2008 law. (Bloomberg)
Two-thirds of British public back microbead ban
Almost two-thirds of the British public think plastic microbeads used in exfoliant toiletries should be banned, according to a poll for Greenpeace. The US passed a ban at the end of 2015, with Canada set to follow suit and several EU nations calling for a legal ban. Plastic pollution in the oceans is a huge problem: 5 trillion pieces of plastic are floating in the world’s seas, and microbeads are a small but significant part of this. “Microbeads are one of those rare environmental problems that are actually relatively easy to solve,” said Louise Edge, oceans campaigner at Greenpeace UK. Microbeads are eaten by marine life, which mistake them for food particles. They can also attract toxins from seawater, which are then passed up the food chain. Safe alternatives are already available, including ground nutshells and salt. (Guardian)
Energy
Lightbulbs excluded in EU regulations on energy efficiency claims
The EU has voted to close loopholes that allow home appliance manufacturers to make misleading claims about their products’ energy performance. Companies will no longer be able to test fridges, TVs and dishwashers using a 10% margin of error between their advertised and actual energy consumptions, under an amendment to Europe’s ecodesign laws. However, lightbulbs have been excluded for now, due to fears that changing the rules could devastate industry. Surveys indicate that around a fifth of household electrical products use more energy than claimed, and manufacturers’ trade groups welcomed the EU move. But the scale of misleading advertising appears highest in the lighting industry. In December, Swedish consumer association tests found that big brand bulb-makers such as Ikea, Osram and Philips were exaggerating their products’ energy performance by up to 25%. (Guardian)
Environment
China to release more water to alleviate Southeast Asia drought
China will release more water from a dam from its province of Yunnan to help alleviate a drought in parts of Southeast Asia, China’s Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, following an initial release begun last month. The water already began being released on Monday, and will continue until the “low water period” is over, ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a daily news briefing. China has said that the water released will benefit Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. In Vietnam, some 1.8 million people are facing water shortages and the government says 230,000 hectares (568,000 acres) of rice has been destroyed in the central and southern regions this year. Thailand is facing its worst water shortage in two decades, with 14 out of 76 provinces hit and large swathes of agricultural land at risk. (Eco-business)
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