Insurance

Kaiser income, revenue up for quarter

May 5, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Oakland Tribune (California)</p> <p>Critics are infuriated that Kaiser continues to rake in profits and raise rates each year. Kaiser implemented rate increases in January. The hike varies from employer to employer, but on average Kaiser officials estimate it to be in the low double digits.</p>

CAPITOL WATCHDOG: Traveling on someone else’s dime;

May 4, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>California lawmakers say privately funded junkets -- including treks to Japan, France and Greece -- help them make better policy decisions. Government watchdogs say the trips open a door to corporate influence peddling.</h3><p class="source">The Orange County Register (California)</p> <p>"It's extraordinarily frustrating," said Carmen Balber of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer and Rights. The foundation recently uncovered documents showing the value of the Japan trip. "You don't need a smoking gun in California to know a $10,000 gift to the Speaker of the Assembly is illegal," Balber said. "But the law does require that smoking gun if that $10,000 gift is funneled through a nonprofit organization. And that's absurd."</p>

WARF CONFLICT ALLEGED

May 3, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source"> The Capital Times (Madison, Wisconsin)</p> <p>While the panel is only advisory, John Simpson of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights said there is an obvious conflict with Gulbrandsen's position and pending stem cell decisions. "As WARF's managing director you clearly have a vested interest in the Patent Office's operations as it contemplates rejecting those over-reaching patents," Simpson said in a letter to Gulbrandsen distributed to the media this week.</p>

Patenting the obvious?

May 2, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>A patent ruling has delivered a serious blow to one US state's hopes of a biotechnology boom</h3><p class="source">Nature</p> <p>"A serious, public policy discussion needs to be had about what researchers can patent," says John Simpson of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights in Santa Monica, California, and one of two non-profit organizations that challenged the patents.</p>

Arnold Knocks State Farm Off the $ Wagon

April 25, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">Arnold reported raising $512,500 in new campaign contributions over the last two weeks leading up to today's <a href="http://arnoldwatch.org/blogs/blogs_000991.php3">high-priced fundraiser</a> at...</font>

What’s Behind All the Bad Press for Health Insurers?

April 23, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">California Healthline</p> <p>"I think things have changed over the past three or four years," says Jerry Flanagan, health care policy director for the Foundation for Consumer and Taxpayer Rights. "There's a new awareness of how the insurance industry -- and especially insurance profits -- have an impact on health care. I think people are paying attention more now than they ever have," Flanagan says. "We're getting closer to what might be considered a public outcry."</p>

UC Academic Senate Confirms BP Contract

April 20, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The Berkeley Daily Planet (California)</p> <p>Also on hand for Thursday's votes was John M. Simpson of the Santa Monica-based Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, which has organized support for critics of the BP agreement. "Our only recourse now is to continue and try and shine light on what's happening and to raise the issue with UC regents," he said.</p>

Academic Senate Calls for BP Deal Oversight

April 20, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The Daily Californian (Berkeley, CA)</p> <p>John Simpson, the stem cell project director for the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, said the process at the meeting yesterday discouraged faculty members from expressing concerns over the campus negotiations with BP and that he felt the decision to pass the new resolutions "had already been settled in advance."</p>

Arnold’s Fundraising Total Tops $115 Million

April 18, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">Arnold shows no signs of slowing down his prolific fundraising machine, and his total take is now just shy of $115.3 million. This is quite the opposite of what Arnold promised when first...</font>

State stem cell program head suddenly resigns

April 18, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">THE SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE</p> <p>John Simpson, who has been monitoring the stem cell program on behalf of a Santa Monica nonprofit called the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, said the two resignations made public Tuesday clearly signaled problems in one of the most critical aspects of the stem cell program.</p>

Allstate hit with $2.8 million verdict in Katrina case

April 17, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Associated Press</p> <p>The jury found Northbrook, Ill.-based Allstate -- which claimed most of the damage was due to storm surge, an event not covered in its policy -- did not pay Robert Weiss enough money to cover wind damage to his home. The verdict included a $1.5 million penalty for the company's failure to pay the claim quickly enough.</p>

Embryonic stem cell pioneer chose to publish, not patent

April 16, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The San Diego Union-Tribune</p> <p>"(James) Thomson made a very important contribution to science," said John Simpson of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights. "It just wasn't something that was patentable."</p>