Feds Say Self-Driving Uber SUV Did Not Recognize Jaywalking Pedestrian In Fatal Crash
The self-driving Uber SUV that struck pedestrian Elaine Herzberg on March 18, 2018, in Tempe, Ariz.
Tempe Police Department via AP
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Tempe Police Department via AP
The self-driving Uber SUV involved in a fatal crash that killed a Tempe, Ariz., woman last year did not recognize her as a jaywalking pedestrian and its braking system was not designed to avoid an imminent collision, according to a federal report released this week.
The conclusions by the National Transportation Safety Board were published ahead of a Nov. 19 meeting in Washington, D.C., called to discuss the cause of the crash and safety recommendations.
The self-driving vehicle struck and killed 49-year-old Elaine Herzberg on March 18, 2018, as she was walking across the street with her bicycle outside of a crosswalk.
According to the NTSB report, the SUV had “a fusion” of three sensor systems — radar, lidar and a camera — designed to detect an object and determine its trajectory. However, the system could not determine whether Herzberg was a pedestrian, vehicle, or bicycle. It also failed to correctly predict her path.
“The system design did not include a consideration for jaywalking pedestrians,” the report said.
At 1.2 seconds before the fatal crash, the system identified Herzberg as a bicycle moving into the path of the Uber, but by then it was too late to safely brake and avoid a collision.
The Uber SUV — a Volvo XC90 — was supervised by Rafaela Vasquez. The Tempe police had previously determined that Vasquez was watching an episode of The Voice while operating the test vehicle, according to The Arizona Republic.
Uber said that it regrets the crash that took Herzberg’s life and is committed to “further prioritize safety.”
“We deeply value the thoroughness of the NTSB’s investigation into the crash and look forward to reviewing their recommendations once issued after the NTSB’s board meeting later this month,” the company said in a statement.
The Tempe crash has amplified calls for regulating the testing of self-driving vehicles.
“We hope Uber has cleaned up its act, but without mandatory standards for self-driving cars, there will always be companies out there that skimp on safety,” Ethan Douglas, senior policy analyst for Consumer Reports, said in a statement as quoted by the Associated Press. “We need smart, strong safety rules in place for self-driving cars to reach their life-saving potential.”
HHS Sues Drugmaker Gilead Over PrEP Patent Infringement
The federal government is suing drugmaker Gilead for alleged patent infringement. The suit charges the company violated patents on “PrEP” drugs that are used to prevent HIV infection.
MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
The Trump administration is taking the highly unusual step of suing a drugmaker. Specifically, the Department of Health and Human Services has filed a lawsuit against Gilead Sciences. The issue is patent infringement. HHS says Gilead has been infringing on its patents for PrEP. This is a drug regimen that prevents HIV infection.
All right. To help us understand all this, we’re going to bring in NPR health policy reporter Selena Simmons-Duffin. Hi, Selena.
SELENA SIMMONS-DUFFIN, BYLINE: Hi.
KELLY: What exactly is PrEP?
SIMMONS-DUFFIN: So PrEP stands for pre-exposure prophylaxis. It’s recommended for people who are at high risk for HIV infection. There are only two drugs currently approved for this, and both of them are made by Gilead. Truvada is the one that’s been used for PrEP since 2012 – very few side effects. It’s a daily pill. It’s almost 100% effective in preventing HIV infection.
But only a fraction of the 1 million people who are at risk for getting HIV are on it. And a big part of that – the reason for that is the price. So the list price here is $1,800 a month. A generic overseas is about $6 a month.
KELLY: Wow. OK.
SIMMONS-DUFFIN: So – yeah. Gilead maintains it invented Truvada. It spent about a billion dollars on R&D. But the CDC worked on developing the PrEP regimen, too, with taxpayer money. So there’s an activist group called PrEP for All that has been calling for months on the government to defend its patents. And last night with this lawsuit, it seems like the Trump administration is doing what these activists wanted.
KELLY: So they must be over the moon. I’m guessing…
SIMMONS-DUFFIN: Yeah.
KELLY: …The reaction has been positive.
SIMMONS-DUFFIN: Very, very pleased; also very surprised. One activist I talked to today said it seemed like they’d been screaming into the void about this, but maybe someone was actually listening.
KELLY: And why is the government – what have they indicated about why they were listening now, and what’s their argument?
SIMMONS-DUFFIN: So this complaint is very strongly worded. I’m going to – here – read part of it to you. Gilead’s conduct was malicious, wanton, deliberate, consciously wrongful, flagrant and in bad faith.
So basically, in general, HHS has lots of patents – thousands of patents. And usually, what happens is they license these patents out to companies and get paid royalties. Gilead didn’t do that. So the Financial Times did an analysis over the summer that Gilead owes the government about a billion dollars in royalties. And this complaint asks for enhanced damages, so they could be getting a lot more than that.
KELLY: I’m trying to situate this in terms of where we are as a country with the HIV epidemic because the Trump administration set that goal – right? – that they were going to try to end the HIV epidemic by 2030. Is this a piece of that?
SIMMONS-DUFFIN: Yeah. I think that the HHS is – been trying to reach that goal, and having Gilead set this very high price for this drug that they need to use to get the epidemic to stop has been a frustration. And I think that HHS and Gilead have been negotiating in good faith, it seems like. And this strongly worded lawsuit makes it seem like the government had enough. So just to remind everybody where we are in this epidemic, 40,000 people still get HIV infections every year here in the U.S.
KELLY: New infections every year.
SIMMONS-DUFFIN: New infections every single year. And you know, this is a beginning of a lawsuit. It’s a court process. It might take a really long time to sort out, but activists I talked to today think that it could be leverage to get actual concessions from Gilead, and they’re really hopeful that that may happen.
KELLY: And real quick – statement from Gilead today.
SIMMONS-DUFFIN: So Gilead maintains that it thinks that HHS’s lawsuits are invalid.
KELLY: All right. That is NPR’s Selena Simmons-Duffin. Thank you.
SIMMONS-DUFFIN: Thank you.
Copyright © 2019 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by Verb8tm, Inc., an NPR contractor, and produced using a proprietary transcription process developed with NPR. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
Australian Women’s And Men’s Soccer Will Get Equal Share Of Revenue
Members of the Australian women’s national soccer team will now earn as much as the men’s team in a historic deal that addresses the equal pay. Note: audio courtesy the Fox Sports Soccer Channel.
RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:
The U.S. women’s soccer team, the 2019 World Cup champion, is still fighting for pay equity with their male counterparts.
DAVID GREENE, HOST:
But there is one team who just made that goal a reality – the women’s team from Australia, known as the Matildas. After years of negotiations, they reached a landmark deal ensuring the women who represent Australia are paid the same as the men.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
SARAH WALSH: It’s hard to not be sentimental about today because it’s a massive moment for football.
GREENE: That is Sarah Walsh, a former pro on the Matildas. She helped lead the negotiations.
MARTIN: And the deal is historic. I mean, not only does it ensure equal pay, it also gives an even split of commercial revenue. And the Matildas now have access to the same training facilities as the male players. Elise Kellond-Knight is one of the Matildas’ stars.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
ELISE KELLOND-KNIGHT: This new deal is enormous. As a female footballer, it’s kind of what we’ve always dreamed of. We’ve always wanted to be treated equal. We wanted to be able to step out on that pitch with equal opportunity and the equal facilities that the men have been exposed to.
GREENE: She says this is going to enable the next crop of Matildas to shine at World Cups in the future.
KELLOND-KNIGHT: The big win is for this younger generation. So they’re looking at this new deal. Now they’re thinking – wow, I can make a go of this. I think it’s phenomenal. I think it’s just going to attract more females to the game.
GREENE: Australia joins New Zealand and Norway in placing female and male players on the same pay scale. The world champion, team USA, as we said, is still absent from that list.
MARTIN: Mediation efforts between the U.S. women’s team and U.S. Soccer fell apart. That battle is now set to head to court next year, just months before the 2020 Olympics.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
Copyright © 2019 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by Verb8tm, Inc., an NPR contractor, and produced using a proprietary transcription process developed with NPR. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
