Prescription drug leader says legalize imports

WASHINGTON -- Breaking with others in his industry, the chief executive of CVS Pharmacy called Wednesday for legalizing imports of prescription drugs. The statement by the nation's largest wholesale purchaser of prescription medicines came a day after the Bush administration's health secretary said legalizing imports appears inevitable. Thomas Ryan, CVS chairman and chief executive officer, is the first executive of a large drug store chain to support importing drugs from countries where prices are controlled by governments so that people can fill prescriptions more cheaply than they can at U.S. pharmacies. Ryan said such a move would be a recognition of reality -- a growing, somewhat shadowy business enterprise that he said is valued at $2.5 billion to $3 billion a year, far more than other estimates of the cross-border drug trade.

Cooler weather slows fires in Southern California

CORONA, Calif. -- Firefighters got help from cooler weather and diminishing winds Wednesday as they tried to contain a trio of wildfires that have burned more than 22,000 acres and destroyed at least 14 homes in Southern California. Thousands of people remained evacuated from their homes as the two largest fires ate up acres of grass and low-lying scrub in Riverside County, an inland region east of Los Angeles. But triple-digit temperatures and strong wind gusts that fanned the flames early in the week had abated.

Electronic vote systems called vulnerable, flawed

WASHINGTON -- Scientists told a federal panel Wednesday that electronic voting isn't completely reliable and suggested a backup paper system might be the only way to avoid another disputed presidential election in November. But Republican DeForest B. Soaries Jr., chairman of the newly created U.S. Election Assistance Commission, said he didn't expect the bipartisan panel would issue national standards requiring paper receipts when it makes preliminary recommendations next week, followed by more detailed guidelines next month. At least 20 states are considering legislation to require a paper record of every vote cast.

Picasso artwork sells for $104 million, sets record

NEW YORK -- Pablo Picasso's 1905 painting "Boy with a Pipe" sold for $104 million Wednesday at Sotheby's, shattering the record for an auctioned painting. The total includes the auction price of $93 million plus the auction house's commission of about $11 million. The previous record was set by Vincent van Gogh's 1890 "Portrait of Doctor Gachet," which was sold to a Japanese billionaire for $82.5 million in 1990 at Christie's. That price included the auction house's premium. Sotheby's did not immediately say who bought "Boy with a Pipe."

Artificial heart implanted in patient at Ky. hospital

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- A self-contained artificial heart was implanted in a patient this week at a Kentucky hospital, the first such experimental surgery at the hospital in more than a year. The patient, who was not identified, was in critical but stable condition after Monday's seven-hour procedure, a Jewish Hospital spokeswoman said. The patient is the 13th recipient of the experimental AbioCor pump in an ongoing clinical trial by the device's maker, Abiomed Inc. of Danvers, Mass. It was the sixth implant performed at the hospital and the first since January 2003.

Adoptive couple indicted in child starvation case

CAMDEN, N.J. -- A couple accused of starving their four adopted sons were indicted Wednesday by a grand jury, a prosecutor said. Raymond and Vanessa Jackson were each indicted on 28 counts of aggravated assault and child endangerment in a case that inspired widespread outrage and was a touchstone for efforts to reform New Jersey's child welfare system. The couple was charged in October with aggravated assault and child endangerment after a 19-year-old adopted son was found foraging through a neighbor's trash for food. Bruce Jackson was just 4 feet tall and weighed only 45 pounds.

-- From wire reports