Insurance

State Offers Low-Cost Car Insurance

May 9, 2010  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p> <strong>Program in place until January 2011</strong><br /> <br /> State insurance officials estimate 18 percent of drivers will let their car insurance lapse in this tough economy, but California's Low Cost Automobile Insurance Program could help some motorists stay legal. “It needs to stay around because you have so many people who are struggling financially right now and who want to stay insured,” said Douglas Heller, executive director of Santa Monica-based Consumer Watchdog. “Especially if they're trying to get job interviews or hold on to a new job. Some people can't afford auto insurance except for this bare-bones policy, which is really a lifeline for people who might otherwise be stuck at home or driving illegally.” </p>

Battle Over Care Insurance Effort Focuses On Who Would Benefit

May 7, 2010  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p> <strong>Backers say letting drivers carry discounts from carrier to carrier would aid most drivers. Foes say the measure would make rates unaffordable for many new drivers.</strong> </p> <p> Consumer Watchdog founder Harvey Rosenfield, who authored Proposition 103 and is active in the Stop Prop 17 campaign, complains about Mercury’s expenditure of more than $7 million pushing the latest initiative in hopes of getting voter approval to raise premiums on new drivers and those reentering the insurance market. The Campaign for Consumer Rights behind Stop Prop 17 has, by contrast, spent about $200,000 in contributions. </p>

Our View: Prop. 17 Has Too Many Tricks – Vote ‘No’

May 6, 2010  ·  Consumer Watchdog

Frankly, there’s little credibility in a major insurance company spending beaucoup bucks on a ballot measure just so it can offer motorists a discount. What others say, such as Consumer Watchdog, if Prop. 17 is approved is that automobile insurance companies will then be able to tack on surcharges to these folks...

AM Alert: Ballot Watch

May 4, 2010  ·  Consumer Watchdog

“Prop 17’s sponsor, Mercury Insurance, has launched its ad blitz the same way it launched its campaign, with deception aimed at covering up a lie,” Consumer Watchdog Executive Director Doug Heller said in a statement. “The ad misleads voters into thinking that this biased information is from a trusted source, when, in fact, it just quotes the lies Mercury submitted as its best arguments for Prop 17.”

Consumer Watchdog: New Prop. 17 Ad Deceptive

May 4, 2010  ·  Doug Heller

The Mercury Insurance Company’s ballot initiative, Proposition 17, officially began its air campaign Tuesday with a statewide 30-second TV spot, and it’s predictably raising hackles from its opponents. The Consumer Watchdog’s Doug Heller called it another attempt at misleading voters.

Decision Could Boost Stem Cell Research

May 4, 2010  ·  John M. Simpson

<strong>Wisconsin Group's Patent Rejected</strong> <br /> <br /> Consumer groups that challenged the patents claimed a major victory Monday. "These patents have been very detrimental to research," said John Simpson, stem cell project director at Santa Monica's Consumer Watchdog, which joined with New York's Public Patent Foundation and Jeanne Loring, a stem cell researcher now at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, to challenge the patents.

Merkley Backing a Push to Give States Strong Powers to Regulate Insurance

May 3, 2010  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p>

Upholding of WARF Stem Cell Patent Reversed

May 3, 2010  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p> The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Board of Appeals and Interference has reversed an earlier decision from the Patent Office's re-examination division that upheld the claims of one of the stem cell lines held by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation. John Simpson, Consumer Watchdog's Stem Cell Project director, had a different opinion. "This is a major victory for unfettered scientific research that could lead to cures for some of the most debilitating diseases," Simpson said. The consumer watchdog groups said that under current patent law only one of the three patent rulings could be appealed by the two groups. However, the groups say the latest ruling by the Board of Appeals is a strong decision that could set a precedent leading to the revocation of the other two patents as well. </p> <p>   </p>

Wisconsin Loses Round in Stem Cell Patent Battle

May 3, 2010  ·  Consumer Watchdog

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ruled Wednesday in favor of the two consumer groups that challenged one of the patents held by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation. Two other patents, which also cover discoveries made by UW-Madison scientist James Thomson, were not challenged and are not affected by the decision. Consumer Watchdog in Santa Monica, Calif., and the Public Patent Foundation in New York City argued that Thomson's work should not qualify for patents and that patent enforcement has hindered U.S. stem cell research.

In Sacramento, Videos Provide Politicians On-The-Job Framing

May 2, 2010  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<strong>Political grandstanding comes with the territory in Sacramento. But the line between government service and career advancement is ever blurrier as legislators perform for their own camera crews.</strong> <p> Watchdog groups say that practice is legally and ethically questionable. <a href="http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode%3Fsection=gov%26group=08001-09000%26file=8310-8317">State law</a> strictly forbids the 'use of public resources for a campaign activity.' "Taxpayers should not pay for campaigns," said Doug Heller, executive director of Consumer Watchdog, a Santa Monica-based nonprofit. "It's not the job of the Legislature to make politicians look good." </p>

WellPoint Cancels Premium Hikes After Analysis Found It ‘Overstated Future Medical Costs To Justify Increases’

April 30, 2010  ·  Consumer Watchdog

Consumer Watchdog has also <a href="http://www.consumerwatchdog.org/patients/articles/?storyId=34012">put out a release</a> urging Congressional investigators to look into “whether Anthem Blue Cross executives made misrepresentations to Congress in testimony claiming the company’s rate increase was actuarially sound,” arguing that if Americans are required to purchase coverage, insurance companies should be required to show that the premiums they charge are reasonable.

If Proposition 17 Passes, Who Would Qualify for the New Discount?

April 29, 2010  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<a href="../../../">Consumer Watchdog’s</a> Harvey Rosenfield, a leading opponent of Proposition 17 (not surprisingly, given that he wrote Proposition 103), said the only logical interpretation of the “deemed to exist” clause is that a driver must have five years of nearly uninterrupted coverage before becoming eligible for the continuity discount. But what about new drivers who’ve spent four years or less behind the wheel? You wouldn’t say their coverage “lapsed” before they started driving, would you?