Up in the air

The European Commission has introduced legislation that would set standards, for the first time, on pollutants released by cars. The commission says its proposals would reduce premature deaths caused by air pollution from 370,000 to 230,000 each year by 2020 — and cost €7 billion (US$8.5 billion) annually to implement. Until now, European regulations have focused on fuel economy standards, encouraging the manufacture of diesel-powered cars that use less fuel, but release particulates into the air. Environmental groups had pushed for even tougher and more expensive legislation, and criticized the proposed rules.

Payout time

GlaxoSmithKline will pay the US Department of Justice $150 million to settle a claim that the drug company inflated the prices paid by government healthcare programmes for its antinausea drugs Zofran (ondansetron) and Kytril (granisetron). The payout arose after a small healthcare provider informed the government of the alleged overcharging, under a law that allows whistle-blowers to gain financially from a settlement. Justice department officials said that 150 similar cases involving drug firms are under investigation. GlaxoSmithKline admitted no wrongdoing in the settlement.

Flu ready

The US health department has given a $100-million contract to Sanofi-Pasteur to manufacture an avian flu vaccine that has just recently proved safe and effective in human volunteers. The vaccine against H5N1 avian influenza — which is threatening to become a global pandemic — will be produced this month and next at the company's US headquarters in Swiftwater, Pennsylvania. It will contribute a yet-to-be-fixed number of doses to a stockpile of 20 million vaccines that the government hopes to build up. The vaccine producer is a division of the French drugmaker Sanofi-Aventis.