Gifted: Philanthropist Art Favre donated $1 million to Mary Bird Perkins–Our Lady of the Lake Cancer Center last month to help drive future innovative treatments, technologies and services. In a news release, Favre says the loss of his aunt to cancer has remained with him throughout his life and motivated him to donate to the cancer center. The donation will spur pioneering and creative solutions to help the thousands of patients the organization serves. An additional component of the gift will be the annual Favre Family Award for Innovation, the cancer center says. Strategic funding will be provided annually to support original projects submitted by Mary Bird Perkins-OLOL researchers, educators and clinicians to enhance cancer care. A selection panel, including Favre, will review proposals and award grant dollars to the idea with the greatest likelihood of influencing patient care. Read more.
Settled: Louisiana is getting a small portion of the $19.5 million settlement Bristol-Myers Squibb has agreed to pay 42 states for promoting a treatment that was not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Attorney General Jeff Landry says in a news release that the state will receive a roughly $342,000 payment from the pharmaceutical giant. Landry’s office says BMS allegedly promoted the atypical antipsychotic drug Abilify for elderly patients with dementia and Alzheimer’s, despite the FDA’s lack of approval for the drug’s safety. In 2006, Abilify received a warning that elderly patients who were treated with antipsychotic drugs for dementia-related illnesses had an increased risk of death. BMS allegedly minimized risks brought on by the drug—causing people to not properly understand the risks related to taking it. Read Landry’s full statement.
Picked: President-elect Donald Trump is slated to pick fast-food executive Andrew Puzder to lead the Labor Department, according to a Republican official and a person close to Trump’s transition team. The Associated Press reports Puzder heads CKE Restaurants Holdings, the parent of Carl’s Jr., Hardee’s and other chains. The Californian was one of Trump’s earliest campaign financiers, and his selection would bring another wealthy businessperson and elite donor into the president-elect’s cabinet. News of Puzder’s selection spread today as Trump headed to Ohio to support the victims and survivors of last week’s attack at Ohio State University. Read the full story.
