US recovers $31 million in Social Security payments to dead people

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government has clawed back more than $31 million in Social Security payments that improperly went to dead people. One U.S. official says that recovery amount is “just the tip of the iceberg.” The money was reclaimed as part of a five-month pilot program after Congress gave the Treasury temporary access to the Social Security Administration’s “Full Death Master File” for three years as part of the omnibus appropriations bill in 2021. The SSA maintains the most complete federal database of individuals who have died, and the file contains records that go back to 1899. The Treasury projects that it will recover more than $215 million over three years.

Winds, arsonists complicate fight against LA-area wildfires as crews report progress

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Firefighters reported significant gains against the two massive wildfires burning around Los Angeles while also extinguishing smaller blazes set by arsonists. The progress was reported Wednesday as a final round of windy, flame-fanning weather moved through Southern California. With winds picking up again, much of the nation’s second-most populous metropolitan region was still on alert for new outbreaks and flareups from the fires that have killed at least 25 people and destroyed thousands of homes. Better conditions expected in the coming days should help fire crews to make even more headway and allow residents to return to their neighborhoods to begin rebuilding.

FDA bans red dye No. 3 from foods

(AP) — U.S. regulators are banning the dye called Red 3 from the food supply. The move comes nearly 35 years after the dye was barred from cosmetics such as lipsticks because of potential cancer risk. Food and Drug Administration officials on Wednesday granted a 2022 petition filed by consumer advocates. The groups argued that some studies found the dye causes cancer in laboratory rats. FDA officials cited a statute known as the Delaney Clause, which requires FDA to ban any additive found to cause cancer in people or rats. Officials say the cancer risk has not been documented in people.

FDA floats plan to make cigarettes nonaddictive, but its fate rests with Trump

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is floating a long-awaited proposal to make cigarettes less addictive by capping their nicotine levels. But the plan comes in the final days of his presidency and is unlikely to take effect anytime soon. Implementing low-nicotine cigarettes would fall to the administration of incoming president-elect Donald Trump, who has generally favored lighter regulation of tobacco products. The FDA says making cigarettes nonaddictive would help millions of Americans quit smoking and stop future generations from starting. Antismoking advocates have long urged the FDA to take that step. But FDA efforts have been slowed by lobbying and political pushback.