• California: Gibson Farms has issued a recall of its shelled walnuts branded as Organic Light Halves and Pieces after discovering the nuts may contain the E. coli strain 0157: H7, which "causes a diarrheal illness often with bloody stools," according to FDA. The recall followed a CDC notification that there were 12 recorded illnesses linked to the walnuts. The walnuts were distributed at more than 300 food retailers, including Whole Foods Market, New Seasons Market, and Rosauers Supermarkets, FDA said. So far, the outbreak has hospitalized seven people. (Diaz, New York Times, 5/1)
• District of Columbia:  Pasteurized, commercially purchased milk and other dairy products from 38 states has tested negative for signs of live bird flu virus, FDA officials said on Wednesday. "These additional, preliminary results further affirm the safety of the U.S. commercial milk supply," said Donald Prater, acting director of FDA's Center of Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. An outbreak of H5N1, also known as bird flu, has infected 33 herds of cattle in eight states as of last week, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. So far there has only been one reported infection of H5N1 in a human, which was a Texas dairy farm worker who developed conjunctivitis. (Molteni, STAT, 5/1; Weiland/Qiu, New York Times, 5/1)
• Kentucky: Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) in March signed into law HB 159, a bill that decriminalizes medical errors, which drew support from many medical associations. Specifically, the law states that "a health care provider providing health services shall be immune from criminal liability for any harm or damages alleged to arise from an act or omission relating to the provision of health services." However, the law does not apply to "gross negligence or wanton, willful, malicious, or intentional misconduct." Nancy Galvagni, president and CEO of the Kentucky Hospital Association, praised the legislation. "Our nurses should not be held criminally liable for a mere mistake and the legal system already has ample means available to address any true negligence," she said. (Robertson, MedPage Today, 5/1)

Although improvement has been made over time, hospitalized patients are still at a significant risk of harm from medical errors. Writing for the Wall Street Journal, Lauren Landro explains how hospitals are utilizing technology, including EMRs and artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms, to reduce the potential for medical errors and improve patient safety.