A Web site and toll-free telephone number have been set up to aid people with questions regarding the $295 million settlement with Ameriquest Mortgage Company.

Ameriquest and its affiliates, including ACC Capital Holding Corporation, Town & Country Credit Corporation, and AMC Mortgage Services, Inc., engaged in unlawful mortgage lending practices from January 1, 1999 through December 31, 2005. Regulators initiated their investigation after receiving hundreds of complaints from Ameriquest customers across the country, including 31 from Nebraska.

 The alleged improper practices included: inadequate disclosure of prepayment penalties, discount points and other loan terms; unsolicited refinancing offers that did not adequately disclose prepayment penalties; improperly influenced and inflated appraisals; and encouraging borrowers to misstate income or employment to obtain loans.

Nebraskans with questions concerning the settlement are encouraged to call 1-800-420-5875 or for Deaf or Hard of Hearing services Text Telephone (TTY) call 1-866-494-8274. Upon calling they will be given a brief recorded summary, followed by the option to get answers to 41 frequently asked questions, the option to leave a voice-mail message for follow-up by the settlement administrator and the option to leave a current mailing address. The Web site, located online at www.AmeriquestMultiStateSettlement.com, offers the same information in both English and Spanish.

MDS sells division to Canadian investor group

MDS Inc. has signed an agreement to sell its Canadian laboratory services business , MDS Diagnostic Services, to Borealis Infrastructure Management Inc. for $1.325 billion Canadian.

Borealis Infrastructure Management is an investment entity of Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, one of Canada’s largest pension plans, will acquire MDS

MDS said the sale of its Diagnostic Services division, with annualized revenues of $335 million Canadian and more than 2,900 employees,was consistent with its strategy of focusing on its life sciences business.

Another of MDS’s divisions, MDS Pharma Services, employees about 600 people in Lincoln doing pharmaceutical research, testing and development operation.

FDA bans clove oil product used in dental treatments

WASHINGTON — A small Minnesota company has been barred from making and selling products with a clove oil derivative used to treat painful complications of some tooth extractions, federal health officials said Friday.

The Food and Drug Administration warned dentists and patients to stop using and discard the various eugenol-containing products made by C.R. Canfield Co. Inc. of Edina, Minn. Eugenol is the primary ingredient in clove oil.

The banned products all contain 20 percent eugenol and include dressings used to pack tooth sockets, as well as prefilled syringes and ointments. The products were sold for the treatment of “dry socket,” a painful condition that sometimes occurs after a tooth is pulled. The company said the U.S. military was among its customers.

The FDA said the products contained an unapproved drug and were not made in accordance with current good manufacturing practices.

Lincoln Airport receives FAA safety award

The Lincoln Airport has been awarded an Airport Safety Enhancement Award from the Federal Aviation Administration. 

To qualify for the award, airports must meet certain minimum standards in the operation of their airfields for three years in a row.

This is the second consecutive award for the Lincoln Airport, meaning it has met the criteria six years in a row. 

Lincoln was the only airport in Nebraska and one of only five in the FAA’s central region, which covers Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri, to win the award.

—From staff and wire reports