Insurance

Step right up – taxpayer advocate puts money where mouth is

April 20, 2004  ·  Doug Heller

<p class="source">The Recorder</p> <p>Dou Heller, executive director of the rabble-rousing Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, issued a "I Read It and I Get It" contest, which challenged lawmakers to prove they had read the workers' comp bill before voting. There were no takers.</p>

Some Are Unsettled by Gov.’s Victory;

April 18, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Schwarzenegger used his clout to quickly win workers' comp reform, but some note that a 77-page bill passed with little public scrutiny.</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p> <p>FTCR went to the Capitol rotunda Friday, offering to make a $1,000 charitable donation on behalf of any lawmaker who could correctly answer 10 questions about the bill. There were no takers.</p>

Governor beams over workers’ comp overhaul

April 17, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The San Francisco Chronicle</p> <p>Watchdog groups wondered how many lawmakers knew much of what they had sped into law. After the bill emerged Thursday, the nonpartisan FTCR gave each legislator a statement that, along with a 12-question quiz, asked them to declare they had read the entir</p>

Drug-Card Headaches

April 17, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p> <p>The new Medicare website could steer seniors toward legitimate discounts. Even more usefully, it could stoke a greater awareness of the pricing inequities that cry out for reforms far more ambitious than a drug discount card.</p>

Arnold’s Insurance Tutor

April 15, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<font face="Verdana,helvetica,Arial"><br/> </font> <!-- body text starts --><!-- startbodytext --> <font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">Arnold told the Los Angeles Times that after "closely studying" the idea of regulati...</font>

The Real Workers’ Comp Deal

April 15, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">ArnoldWatch hears that the real deal in Sacramento has nothing to do with the language of the workers' comp bill itself but with a political agreement on another measure.<br/> <br/> Tipsters...</font>

Drug Deals?

April 14, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">The "Collectinator" has done a far better job of collecting campaign cash for himself from pharmaceutical companies - over $290,000 in checks cashed - than he has collecting money...</font>

Governor to keep $100,000 from workers’ comp insurer

April 9, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Associated Press</p> <p>"I think what is going on is every so often Schwarzenegger will return a contribution in order to clean himself," said Doug Heller with FTCR. "If you take a bath but don't use soap you're still dirty. I think that's what's going on here."</p>

Save Prop. 103

April 7, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The San Francisco Chronicle</p> <p>California's congressional delegation needs to work hard -- and fast -- to stop federal legislation that could undermine this state's voter-approved controls on auto insurance rates.</p>

Letter To President Bush and Senator Kerry

April 6, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Shell Documents Show Need For National Moratorium On Refinery Closures</h3> <p>We write you with new internal Shell documents showing manipulation of supply at domestic refineries and ask that both of you call for an immediate moratorium on refinery closures in the United States.</p>

Hitch in Workers’ Comp Reform;

April 5, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>State legislators debate whether imposing rate caps on premiums would relieve employers or drive away insurers.</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p> <p>California deregulated workers' compensation insurance in 1995. That is one of the major reasons the workers' comp system is such a mess, said Douglas Heller, executive director of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights in Santa Monica.</p>

Lawyer tapped to run state’s regulatory office

April 4, 2004  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Contra Costa Times (California)</p> <p>Doug Heller, of the Santa Monica-based FTCR, which has criticized Schwarzenegger's freeze of certain state regulations, expressed concerns about the controversy from Heidig's past and said it's extremely important that the agency be beyond reproach.</p>