Insurance

Congressional Hearing To Focus On Google Book Search

September 9, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

The Google Book Search Settlement has taken yet another twist: in a last minute announcement, the House Judiciary Committee today posted notice that it would hold a hearing on “The Competition and Commerce in Digital Books” or, in other words, the Google Books Search Settlement, on Thursday, September 10th at 10am. With the hearing, the Google Book Search settlement has now hit the trifecta—all three branches of government are involved: the Judiciary is overseeing the settlement; the Executive, via the Department of Justice, is looking at antitrust issues; and now Congress, which brings the widest possible government scope from which to address potential issues with book digitization.

A ‘framework’ made in health insurer’s workshop

September 9, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p> The latest proposal in the Washington health reform debate protects employers from costs, delivers millions of new customers to the insurance industry and protects it from competition. Overall medical cost reduction is vague. And the middle class, the group with no free-spending Washington lobby, gets the lump of coal--less help with premiums and higher out of pocket costs than in other proposals. </p>

CA Investigates Kaiser, Anthem, Insurers

September 8, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="summary"> Judy Dugan of the Santa Monica-based advocacy group Consumer Watchdog said one of the primary reasons for the HMO system's dysfunction is its for-profit emphasis that puts patient care on the back burner.  "They (HMOs) seem to be happy to take care of slightly healthy people, but their dollar alert goes up when it's expensive," Dugan said. "They don't have any huge interest in figuring out what effective care is and isn't and sometimes it seems random when they deny something as not medically necessary." </p>

Uncertain Future For Low-Cost Auto Insurance Program

September 8, 2009  ·  Doug Heller

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is considering whether to extend the state’s low-cost auto insurance program, which offers bare-bones coverage to motorists who would otherwise drive without insurance — and break the law.  “It’s very important that this program be extended,” said Doug Heller, executive director of Consumer Watchdog, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit that tracks insurance issues. “The last thing we want is for people to be uninsured.” The program will expire at the end of 2010 unless it is extended by lawmakers.

Obama needs to become our whistleblower-in-chief

September 8, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p> Wednesday's presidential address to Congress is the moment for President Obama to prove he is a real outsider, and the fate of genuine health care reform depends upon it. The President promised the public during the campaign he would be a Washington whistleblower. Obama said he would haul drug company executives before him on C-SPAN and demand greater savings. He said he opposed mandatory health insurance because Americans would buy insurance if they could afford it. He campaigned as a populist, not a beholden politician. </p>

Consumer Watchdog Sends Letter To CA Attorney General Asking For Investigation Into Health Insurers

September 4, 2009  ·  Jamie Court

Consumer Watchdog sent a letter to California Attorney General Jerry Brown asking his office to investigate United Health Care and another insurer, WellPoint, for allegedly violating California's Labor Code by pressuring employees to lobby against reform. The letter says in part, "While coercive communications with employees may be legal, if abhorrent, in most states, California's Labor Code appears to directly prohibit them."

Billboard Blasting Mercury Insurance Is Removed

September 4, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

LOS ANGELES, CA -- California-based Consumer Watchdog, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization, said Mercury Insurance has threatened to sue the owners of a billboard the group used to display a statement that reads, "Consumer Watchdog says: You can't trust Mercury Insurance."

CA Attorney General To Investigate The Nation’s Two Biggest Health Insurance Companies

September 4, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p> KEITH OLBERMANN, HOST (voice-over):  Good evening from New York. In health news today, the group Consumer Watchdog has asked California Attorney General Jerry Brown to investigate whether the nation's two biggest health insurance companies, included United Health Group, which we've reported on here before, broke state law by pressuring employees to oppose health care reform. And in other health news today, California Attorney General Jerry Brown announced he's now investigating possible wrongful business practices by his state's five biggest health insurance companies, including one owned by the United Health Group. </p>

Head-scratching in Europe over U.S. health reform mess

September 4, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p> I just got off the phone with a well-informed Dutch reporter based in Washington, D.C. His monumental assignment was, in part, to explain to a puzzled Dutch audience how such U.S. health reform became infected with so much fear, anger and distrust. And why, he asked, do fearmongers have so much power against serious analysts and policy makers? A hard question to answer. </p>

A Warning SIgn That Isn’t Ignored: L.A. Billboard Attacking Mercury Insurance Is Removed

September 4, 2009  ·  Harvey Rosenfield

<div class="byline"> <span class="toolSet" style="width: 332px;"><strong>Consumer Watchdog's billboard catches the eye of target Mercury Insurance, which gets the ad taken down. </strong> </span></div> <div class="byline"> <span class="toolSet" style="width: 332px;">  </span></div> <div class="byline">

Answers On IOUs And Quake Insurance

September 4, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

Doug Heller, executive director of Consumer Watchdog, says he is not worried about the CEA's ability to pay claims or its independence from the state's general fund. "What would concern me is how many of my neighbors don't have earthquake insurance," he says. "If I can afford to rebuild my house but four out of five neighbors can't, what will happen to the neighborhood?" Even if property values fall, Heller says it is worth buying insurance to have a place to live.

Nullifying Anti-Steering Law A “Hard Sell”

September 1, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

Consumer advocates are concerned about a bill that could ostensibly undo a current Calif. law preventing insurers from "steering" customers to auto body shops under contract with the insurer.  Calif. Assemblywoman Mary Hayashi (D-Hayward) is spearheading the proposal -- AB 1200 -- which would allow insurers to present reasons as to why customers should use "preferred" body shops at any time during the claim process.  This would represent an obvious departure from the anti-steering law enacted in 2003 (SB 551 -- Speier), which specifically prohibits insurance companies from dictating that customers get cars repaired at certain establishments.