Business & Entrepreneurship

Fourteen people have been arrested in connection with a 2012 outbreak of fungal meningitis linked to steroid injections that caused 64 deaths across the United States. The arrests, which resulted in two people being charged with 25 acts of second-degree murder, remind us that drug manufacturers must be responsible for their actions, says a noted medical ethics expert at Washington University in St. Louis.

When it comes to holiday gift-giving, we all know it’s the thought that counts. But there is such a thing as giving it too much thought, at least when it comes to picking out a gift card, according to Robyn LeBoeuf​, PhD, associate professor of marketing in the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis.

As part of the White House response to unrest in Ferguson, President Barack Obama has proposed $263 million for police body camers and training. While body cameras can be effective, they only work if the police don’t turn them off or delete their records, says a privacy expert at Washington University in St. Louis.

The St. Louis County Circuit Court has the authority to seek and appoint a special prosecutor to present the case involving Michael Brown’s death to a new grand jury — and should do so, a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis said.

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a lawsuit targeting federal subsidies designed to help millions of Americans afford health insurance. The case is dubious on its merits, says Timothy D. McBride, PhD, professor at Washington University in St. Louis’ Brown School and a noted health economist, citing legal precedent as reason for allowing the subsidies to continue.

​Ten finalists in the 2014 Olin Cup Competition​ are offering novel solutions to real-world challenges and will vie for $70,000 in seed money to start a new company. The Olin Cup is sponsored by the Skandalaris Center for Interdisciplinary Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Washington University in St. Louis.

Though the rhetoric in Washington, D.C., may seem to favor a push on progress, broad-based individual tax reform is not possible in the short term, though other opportunities for reform may still exist, says an expert on federal income tax and tax law at Washington University in St. Louis. Adam Rosenzweig, JD, discusses the possibility of tax reform in the lame-duck session.

While political and judicial rhetoric around unions has softened in recent years, images of the past still haunt labor, argue two Washington University in St. Louis researchers. In “Re-Assembling Labor,” published online Nov. 5 in Social Science Research Network, the authors seek to draw the lessons of assembly into contemporary labor law — to re-assemble labor law around the theory and doctrine of assembly that formed its early core.

With Republicans gaining control of Congress after the midterm elections, Speaker of the House John Boehner insists that President Barack Obama could get “burned” if he uses executive action to move forward on immigration reform during the remainder of his presidency. Obama is well within his rights to proceed with the temporary measures he is considering, says an immigration law expert at Washington University in St. Louis.

Election Day is difficult for many political candidates. But it’s no picnic for their supporters either. A new study co-authored by Olin Business School’s Lamar Pierce, PhD, shows just how tough election days can be. The study finds that winning elections barely improves the happiness of those from the winning political party.