There are no shortage of surveys and studies that have found consumers aren’t doing so great with their finances: from 45% of Americans carrying at least $25,000 in debt to one-in-four families failing to seek medical attention because of financial worries. Now, another survey — this time from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — found that more than 40% of adults struggle to make ends meet. [More]
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Trump Administration Halts Study On Health Risks Associated With Coal Mining
By 8.22.17
A federal study examining the potential health risks of living near surface coal mining sites in Appalachia has been put on hold by the White House as it reviews its grant and agreements. [More]
Four Things To Know About One Of The Largest Emergency Room Staffing Companies & Surprise Medical Bills
By 7.24.17 — Updated: 7.25.17
Opening your mailbox to a surprise bill of any kind isn’t typically a welcome experience. But when that bill is for thousands of dollars in medical care you once paid significantly less for, it’s even worse. Yet, that’s a scenario happening to more consumers as hospitals continue to contract out emergency room staffing, and one company appears to be driving the majority of costs. [More]
Tweeting Before The Big Game Is Not Going To Help You Win
By 6.6.17 — Updated: 6.9.17
Staying up late and failing to get enough sleep can impair your performance the following day. This includes NBA players who stay up Tweeting, a new report finds. [More]
Cotton Swab Injuries Send 12,500 Kids To Hospital Each Year
By 5.8.17 — Updated: 5.9.17
We all know that we’re not supposed to stick things in our ear, but we’re also told that ear wax is icky and should be removed post-haste. This contradictory set of priorities might explain why thousands of kids show up at the hospital each year with swab-related ear injuries. [More]
Study Finds Paying For Online Reviews Leads To Fewer Reviews
By 5.2.17 — Updated: 5.9.17
Rewarding people with cash has generally been a good way to motivate them to do things they are otherwise not obligated to do, but a new study claims that when you offer folks money for writing online reviews, it can backfire and result in fewer overall reviews. [More]
Study Claims That There’s A Decent Chance You Look Like Your Name
By 2.28.17
Have you ever met someone and immediately thought “You look like a Heather,” and then it turns out they person is actually named Heather? While you might want to believe you have some kind of psychic ability, you probably don’t. Instead, a new study finds that under the right circumstances people can often correctly match names to faces based on social perceptions. [More]
Chance Of Cardiac Event Jumps By 23% Two Days After Major Snowstorm
By 1.30.17
Whether it’s overexertion from shoveling snow, the stress of being stuck inside, or any number of other possible causes, a new study shows that the chance of a cardiovascular-related hospital admission significantly increases two days after a major snowstorm. [More]
Feds, New York Accuse Maker Of Prevagen Dietary Supplement Of False Advertising
By 1.9.17
Prevagen is a dietary supplement that claims to help improve memory in 90 days, but both federal and state regulators are accusing the company behind Prevagen of making false and unsubstantiated claims. [More]
Report: For-Profit College Students Earn Less After Graduation Than They Did Before
By 5.31.16
For-profit college chains often market themselves to non-traditional students — single parents, lower income individuals, military servicemembers — as a viable path to better job prospects and more money. However, a new report suggests that enrolling in of these sometimes costly schools may not help students reach their goals. [More]
Study: Airlines Padded Flight Schedules To Improve On-Time Performance Stats
By 11.30.15
So many things can delay a flight — weather, traffic, minor technical glitches to name just a few — and yet nearly three-quarters of all flights arrived at their destination on schedule last year. A new study suggests that this achievement might not just be the result of increased efficiency, but of padded schedules. [More]
Honda, Takata Sat On Commissioned Study Showing Chemical Could Cause Airbag Ruptures
By 10.21.15
While Takata’s shrapnel-shooting airbags have affected millions of vehicles from 11 automakers, Honda is perhaps the one car manufacturer that has felt the brunt of the deadly defect: not only has the company recalled millions of cars, its models have also been responsible for all eight deaths linked to the defect. And now, a new report suggests Honda and Takata kept quiet on a study that questioned the propellent used in the airbags for years. [More]
Electronic Mortgage Documents Easier To Understand, Provide More Benefits For Consumers
By 8.5.15
If you’ve ever bought a house, you’re more than familiar with the mountain of paperwork you have to deal with at closing, not all of which are easy to understand. But a study claims that homeowners who utilize a newer electronic method for reviewing closing documents may better comprehend what they’re signing. [More]
No Surprise Here: CFPB Finds Reverse Mortgage Ads Create False Impressions
By 6.4.15
Last year, Consumerist reported on why you shouldn’t run out to sign up for a reverse mortgage just because Fred Thompson or other paid spokespeople opine about the benefits in national advertising campaigns. Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau echoed our fears that these ads can be misleading by releasing the results of a focus group and issuing an advisory warning consumers that promotions for the costly product often don’t tell the whole story. [More]
Data Breaches Now Cost Companies An Average Of $3.8M
By 5.28.15
The aftermath of a now all-too-common data breach can be frustrating for consumers: canceling credit cards, monitoring credit reports for irregularities, and working with banks to recoup unauthorized purchases. But the hacks can also be expensive for the targeted company, with the average cost now sitting at a 10-year high of $3.8 million. [More]
Report: Teens Buy E-Cigarettes Online With Little Difficulty Despite Industry Safeguards
By 3.2.15
Back in February 2014, Ohio became the first state to prohibit the sale of e-cigarettes to minors. Since then, 40 other states and cities have followed suit. Despite those regulations, a new study found it’s increasingly easy for teens to skirt the rules by purchasing the products online. [More]
FTC: Credit Report Errors Continuing To Linger Years After Being Found
By 1.21.15
Two years ago, a Federal Trade Commission study found a surprisingly large percentage of consumers had discovered, and had corrected, errors on their credit reports. There were also several people who believed there were errors with their reports but had not yet reached a resolution. A new follow-up study from the FTC finds that nearly 70% of these disputes from 2012 are still unresolved. [More]
Study Shows You Can’t Think Straight When Your iPhone Is In The Other Room
By 1.12.15
A day without my smartphone is a day I couldn’t even imagine (scary, I know). And a new study by scientists at the University of Missouri says that not only is this separation anxiety very real, but that it can impact our cognitive abilities. [More]
