Lawmakers clear tobacco funds for med school

State House and Senate lawmakers have agreed to allow the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine to continue using a portion of tobacco settlement funds for operations. The funds were obtained from a lawsuit against four tobacco companies for harm caused by their products.

A committee of leaders from both houses unanimously approved Senate Bill 239 Friday, positioning the measure for a final vote. The school has used from $3 million to $4 million annually for operations in recent years, but that authorization expired in June when lawmakers failed to act before the Legislature adjourned last year.

REHAB Hospital selects Roe as new CEO

Timothy J. Roe, M.D., has been appointed president and CEO of the Rehabilitation Hospital of the Pacific, effective today.

He replaces Edward Clair Jones, who has served as REHAB’s President and CEO since 2007. Jones resigned and will relocate to San Diego.

"With REHAB poised to begin a new chapter, renovating for the future, it is time for a new leader to embrace our past successes and take up future challenges," Jones said.

Most recently, Roe served as executive director for the Cheng Health Foundation in Hawaii.

GE earnings fall, sales miss estimates

NEW YORK » General Electric Co. said Friday that its fourth-quarter earnings fell 18 percent as revenue declined after it sold its stake in the NBC network.

Revenue of nearly $38 billion was lower than what Wall Street expected.

The Fairfield, Conn., industrial conglomerate earned $3.73 billion, or 35 cents a share, compared with $4.54 billion, or 42 cents a share, a year earlier.

Revenue fell 8 percent to $37.97 billion. The decline was largely due to the company’s sale of its majority stake in NBC Universal to Comcast last year. But GE also said it saw slower growth in Europe, and its ongoing effort to make its GE Capital financing arm more efficient reduced revenue at the unit by 9 percent.

Kodak gets 2013 deadline to reorganize

ROCHESTER, N.Y. » Eastman Kodak Co. has a little more than a year to reshape its money-losing businesses and deliver a get-out-of-bankruptcy plan.

Girded by a $950 million financing deal with Citigroup Inc., the photography pioneer aims to keep operating normally during bankruptcy while it peddles a trove of digital-imaging patents.

After years of mammoth cost-cutting and turnaround efforts, Kodak ran short of cash and sought protection from its creditors Thursday. It is required under its bankruptcy financing terms to produce a reorganization plan by Feb. 15, 2013.

Walmart taps first Sam’s Club female CEO

BENTONVILLE, Ark. » Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s biggest retailer, said Friday that it has named Rosalind Brewer as CEO of Sam’s Club — the first woman and the first African-American to hold a CEO position at one of the company’s business units.

Brewer, 49, is replacing Brian Cornell, 52, who is leaving the company so he can return to the Northeast for family reasons. He had served in the role since 2009.

Brewer, who also will be president of Sam’s Club, was previously president of the retailer’s U.S. East business unit.

Safety agency seeks checks on A380 wings

BERLIN » Europe’s air safety authority told airlines Friday to inspect nearly a third of the world’s A380 superjumbo jets within about six weeks after Airbus found new cracks in metal brackets inside the wings.

The European Aviation Safety Agency issued an airworthiness directive that called for "a detailed visual inspection" of the aircraft’s so-called "wing rib feet" — the metal brackets that connect the wing’s ribs to its skin.

"This condition, if not detected and corrected, could potentially affect the structural integrity of the airplane," EASA said.

EASA said the order applies to 20 A380s. The agency gave airlines between four days and six weeks from Jan. 24 to carry out the checks. The deadline depends how much flying time the giant planes have clocked.

Novartis drug investigated after 11 deaths

LONDON » A European agency is investigating a multiple sclerosis drug made by industry giant Novartis to determine whether the medicine played any role in the deaths of at least 11 patients.

The drug, Gilenya, was licensed last year in the European Union to treat a severe type of multiple sclerosis. It can cause a slow heart rate when first taken, and doctors closely monitor patients after the first dose.

The European Medicines Agency, which is now investigating the drug, said it isn’t clear whether it caused the deaths. One of the fatalities occurred in the United States, where a patient died within 24 hours of taking the first dose.

ON THE MOVE

Aqua Hotels & Resorts has hired Stephen Keller as corporate controller. He was chief financial officer and administrative director for Marimed Foundation for six years and controller for Dream Cruises for eight years.

Kaiser Permanente Hawaii has appointed the following clinic administration managers for its Hawaii island clinics:

» Lloyd Tanaka will manage the Kona and South Kona clinics. He was previously a clinic manager for the Waimea and South Kona clinics and its Mobile Health vehicle.

» George "Skip" White will oversee the Waimea and Hilo clinics and Kaiser Permanente’s Mobile Health vehicle. He was previously a clinic manager for the Kona, Waimea and Hilo clinics.