Health coverage has been in the news in a big way this year, thanks to Republican-led efforts in Congress to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) throughout the spring and summer. That plan ultimately failed, but both sides of the political aisle do agree on one thing: There’s a lot of room to go on improving health care access and containing medical costs. A new rallying cry has risen up among Democrats: Time for single-payer! But what does that actually mean — and what could it look like? [More]
policy
U.S. Lifts Laptop Ban For Remaining Foreign Airlines, Final Airport Exemption Expected This Week
By 7.17.17
A week after it was rumored that the Department of Homeland Security would likely lift its ban on laptops and other personal electronics put in place in March from the few airlines that remained subject to the policy, that time has come. [More]
Walgreens Still Not Kicking Cigarette Habit, But Makes Some Products Less Visible
By 1.26.17
Three years after Walgreens said it would evaluate whether or not to continue selling cigarettes, and a year after it said it needed a bit more time to come to a resolution, shareholders for the drugstore chain are questioning the company’s choice to continue selling these cancer-causing products. [More]
Target Unveils Policy Aimed At Removing Potentially Harmful Chemicals From Products
By 1.25.17
The ingredient lists dotting the aisles of Target could soon get a makeover, one aimed not only at making the lists easier to read, but reducing the amount and types of chemicals used. [More]
Following Richard Marx Heroics, Airline Eases Restrictions On Using Tasers On Unruly Passengers
By 12.27.16
A week after singer Richard Marx criticized Korean Air crew members as being “ill-equipped” to deal with unruly passengers after he helped subdue a fellow traveler on a flight from Vietnam to South Korea, the carrier says it will better train employees and allow them to use stun guns to manage in-flight disturbances. [More]
Facebook Relaunches “Safety Center” Anti-Bullying Hub With More Resources
By 10.24.16
Six years ago Facebook launched The Safety Center as a way to address bullying and provide users with copies of the social network’s community standards to ensure that anyone using the site can do so safely. Today, the company relaunched the Center and updated its Bullying Prevention Hub in order to reach more of its 1.7 billion users. [More]
Former Wells Fargo Employee Claims Bank Defrauded Government Of $1.4B In Foreclosure Funding
By 5.16.16
There has been no shortage of lawsuits filed against Wells Fargo in recent years, from accusations the bank pushed mortgages on borrowers who couldn’t repay them to claims the company pressed employees to engage in fraudulent conduct with regard to customer accounts. Now, a recently unsealed whistleblower lawsuit melds together those issues, claiming the bank encouraged employees to withhold information from customers that could potentially lead to foreclosure proceedings. [More]
You Now Might Have To Pay Extra If You Keep Your Uber Waiting
By 4.27.16
Just like you might get annoyed when you have to wait too long for your Uber driver, that driver might be losing money for all the time you dawdle inside because you weren’t ready to be picked up. That’s why the service is testing a new policy that allows drivers to tack on a fee if a passenger keeps them waiting for more than two minutes. [More]
Carnival Says Cuba Cruises To Move Ahead As Planned After Policy Shift
By 4.22.16
Carnival Cruise Line’s Adonia ship will depart the Port of Miami as planned on May 1 with Cuban-Americans on board after the company reached an agreement with the government of the island nation. [More]
Man Says His American Airlines’ Seat Was Soaked In Urine
By 2.25.16
Last year, a California couple were greeted by a truly gross experience when they found a barf bag full of, well, barf in the seatback of the flight they had just boarded. As difficult as it might be to believe, an Iowa man’s recent experience might top that disgusting discovery: he claims the seat he was assigned, and subsequently sat in, was soaked with urine. [More]
American Medical Association Calls To Ban Ads For Prescription Drugs, Medical Devices
By 11.18.15
In the future when you tune in to watch the big game or your favorite primetime show there might be something missing during the commercial break: ads for prescription drugs and medical devices. The American Medical Association proposed a ban on such advertisements Tuesday, claiming the marketing may be driving consumer demand for unnecessary and expensive treatments. [More]
White House Unveils New Plan To Get Affordable Broadband Access To Low-Income Households
By 7.15.15
By 2015 it seems like everyone has broadband access, but that “everyone” is very deceptive. Although the vast majority of middle- and high-income homes in the United States have broadband access at home, low-income homes are much less likely to. [More]
AMC: No Kids After 6pm In R-rated Movies
By 3.11.10
Reader Chalicechick writes in to let us know that her local AMC has a sign up banning kids under 6 years old after 6pm in R-rated movies. [More]
Southwest Suddenly Decides Man Is Too Fat To Fly — Again
By 9.8.09
We thought this issue was taken care of the last time a Las Vegas Southwest employee randomly stopped someone from flying without checking to see if they could actually sit in a seat with the arms down (per Southwest’s policy), but apparently not. Now a Chicagoland man says he was stopped from boarding a return flight home to Chicago because he was too big (6’2″ 350lbs), but he airline wouldn’t allow him to prove that he could fit in the seat.
Microsoft Deep-Sixes Red Ring Of Death Coffins, Makes Customers Supply Their Own Boxes
By 6.12.09
Although we received an indication in March that Microsoft was phasing out its Xbox 360 return policy of sending customers padded boxes with prepaid return envelopes, gaming blog Joystiq confirmed that Microsoft quietly made it official in late May.
The FDA Isn't Yet Sure How To Make Our Food Safer But Lots Of Cash Might Help
By 5.23.09
The FDA is set to receive $3.2 billion next year but they don’t yet have a plan to make our food any safer. That doesn’t sit well with Congressional appropriator Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), who at a recent hearing told Acting FDA Commissioner Joshua Sharfstein: “A lot sounds to me like buzzwords from a past administration.”
Delta Can't Be Bothered To Sell The Obese Two Adjoining Seats
By 5.17.09
Evan’s on the large side and wants to buy two adjoining seats, but Delta doesn’t seem to care whether or not he inconveniences other passengers. The airline won’t assign two seats to the same passenger name, and if he buys a second seat under a different name, it won’t necessarily adjoin the first. Delta also warned that “they will give [his] second seat away if they need it, even if [he] paid for it.” One agent thought he had a solution, but it was going to cost Evan $200 more than Delta’s online fares.
T-Mobile Keeps Charging For Canceled Service, Refuses To Issue Full Refund
By 4.25.09
Taylor just noticed that T-Mobile has been billing him $19.99 for a data package he asked them to cancel seven months ago. Yes, Taylor should’ve caught the mistake sooner, but now that he’s found it, he wants T-Mobile to refund the $140 in unauthorized charges. T-Mobile, citing policy, is only willing to credit him $60.
