Mylan CEO Heather Bresch has already made one trip to Capitol Hill to answer questions regarding the skyrocketing price of the emergency epinephrine injectors, but it looks like the company won’t be making a repeat outing to talk with lawmakers. [More]
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Lawmakers Who Received Money From Wells Fargo Now Want Answers From Bank’s CEO
By and 9.29.16 — Updated: 10.3.16
Imagine you’re a politician who received tens of thousands of dollars in recent years from a bank, and hundreds of thousands from a banking industry that wants to do away with new consumer protections. Then that bank is caught opening up millions of fake accounts without authorization. If you’re one of these bank-backed legislators, this huge scandal is apparently an opportunity to take shots at the federal regulator the banking industry has been trying to undermine since its creation. [More]
6 Things You Should Know About Heather Bresch, The CEO Behind EpiPen Price Hike
By 8.24.16
As you may have heard, the cost of a life-saving EpiPen from drug maker Mylan increased as much as 600% in just nine years, causing lawmakers and health advocates to call on the drug company — and its CEO Heather Bresch — to lower the cost and provide answers for its increase in the first place. But that could be difficult given the executive’s personal connections not only to the medication, but one legislator. [More]
Staples & Office Depot Ask Judge To Toss Antitrust Lawsuit Without Defending Merger
By 4.5.16
Two weeks after the beginning of a federal court hearing on the proposed mega-merger between Office Depot and Staples, the office supply chains’ lawyers have decided not to present a defense against the Federal Trade Commission’s claim that the deal is bad for consumers and businesses. [More]
Religious Groups Call On DNC Chair To Denounce Pro-Payday Loan Bill
By 3.17.16
Faith-based community organizations are among the loudest voices in the battle against predatory lending practices like payday loans. And while most of their efforts are on education and local reforms, a coalition of these groups is thinking nationally, calling on Congress, including the chair of the Democratic National Party, to rethink their support a pro-payday loan piece of legislation. [More]
Bank-Backed Lawmakers Accuse CFPB Of Hurting Consumers By Trying To Regulate Payday Loans
By 2.11.16
It’s never a good sign for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau when it’s called to testify at a Congressional subcommittee hearing subtitled “The CFPB’s Assault on Access to Credit and Trampling of State and Tribal Sovereignty.” And so it should come as little surprise that bank-backed members of the House Financial Services Committee is trying to paint the agency’s efforts to rein in predatory lending as an attack on the very people the CFPB is trying to protect. [More]
Anheuser-Busch CEO Tells Congress That Mega-Beer Merger Is Good For Everyone, Really
By 12.8.15
Executives involved in the billion-dollar beer merger between Anheuser-Busch and SABMiller tried to paint a rosy picture of its impending marriage — despite a wealth of contradictory testimony — assuring lawmakers that there’s really no downside to the deal: everyone will benefit, even consumers. [More]
Big Beer CEOs To Testify In Front Of Congress On The Awesomeness Of Mega-Merger Tuesday
By 12.7.15
There are billions of reasons (or rather dollars) for the executives for Anheuser-Busch InBev, SABMiller and Molson Coors Brewing Co. to prove that a mega-beer merger is a brilliant plan, and now it looks like they’ll have their chance to opine on its greatness by testifying in front of Congress tomorrow. [More]
VW Fix Could Take Two Years Or More; Dealer Profitability Is Main Focus
By 10.8.15
Executives for Volkswagen’s U.S. operations told lawmakers during a hearing on the company’s deceptive emission systems, that he’s confident the 500,000 so-called “clean diesel” vehicles secretly set up to cheat on emissions tests can be fixed with little disruption for owners. [More]
Regulators Holding Yet Another Takata Airbag Meeting, Could Finally Coordinate The Messy Recall
By 9.9.15
Back in June, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it was considering options to speed up replacement of defective shrapnel-shooting Takata-produced airbags linked to eight deaths and hundreds of injuries. Today, the agency announced it will hold yet another public meeting next month, a move that signals the agency’s latest step in taking control of the massive recall effort. [More]
San Diego Woman Must Pay $15K Fine Over Airbnb Rentals
By 8.14.15
Cities across the country have been cracking down on Airbnb and homeowners who rent through the service but may be playing fast and loose with the rules: from enacting city laws and creating offices to enforce said regulations, to ordering the company to pay millions of dollars in hotel taxes and levying fines against those who provide accommodations through the site. The latest such case comes out of San Diego where a woman was recently ordered to pay $15,000 for renting rooms in her home in violation of city laws. [More]
NCLC: More Can Be Done To Protect Consumers From Hurtful Medical Debt On Credit Reports
By 9.10.14
Upcoming changes to the way FICO calculates credit scores will improve the way americans access credit, but advocates from the National Consumer Law Center – and legislators – are aiming to create an overhaul of the entire credit reporting system; starting with medical debt. [More]
Earplugs: You're Probably Inserting Them Wrong
By 6.1.09
Do you engage in any really loud summer activities, like chainsawing, monster truck rallies, or vacuuming a library? If you do, Consumer Reports Health wants you to know that not only should you be wearing earplugs, you’re probably inserting them wrong.
AT&T Says It Will Begin Prorating Termination Fees
By 10.17.07
Maybe the T-Mobile lawsuit has scared AT&T a bit, because they’ve announced that they’re changing their early termination policy: they will now prorate termination fees instead of charging a flat fee. They’re also removing the policy that required existing customers to extend a current agreement or sign up for a new one when changing their level of service. No word on when these changes will go into effect, but there’s nothing on their website yet.
