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“Government, taxpayers, nursing home residents as well as their families and caregivers should be outraged and seek solutions,” says Daniel R. Levinson, Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, in announcing the result of a DHHS audit which found that nearly one in seven elderly nursing home […]

A bill was recently introduced in the Senate which would prohibit corporations from including arbitration clauses in their standard contracts with consumers and non-union employees. Though the Federal Arbitration Act, passed in 1925, was originally intended to cover only certain types of disputes, such as those between merchants and where […]

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently issued a Final Rule aimed at protecting struggling homeowners from mortgage relief scams. The new rule outlaws advance fees and false claims, while also requiring clear and accurate disclosures from companies providing such services. The FTC recently announced the Mortgage Assistance Relief Services (MARS) […]

In a much-anticipated decision, the United States Supreme Court ruled against consumers in AT&T v. Concepcion. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court held that corporations may use arbitration clauses to cut off consumers and employees’ right to join their claims together through class actions to hold corporations accountable. The […]

CitiBank recently announced a change to its overdraft policies. Beginning July 25, 2011, CitiBank will process checks from smallest to largest. Currently, most banks process checks from largest to smallest, which means that if a large check overdraws an account, then each smaller check will do so also, resulting in […]

No one wants to believe this frightening fact. One in three? That’s right. Studies now show that one out of every three hospital admissions includes an injury to a patient due to a medical mistake. If everyone knew how dangerous hospitals are, I wouldn’t have to explain my job at […]

Big business and insurance company lobbyists have pressured some of our legislators to file a bill, House Bill 709, that is a radical attack on the rights of injured workers. The bill has many objectionable provisions, but here are some of the worst: With few exceptions, the bill limits both […]

In a recent study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine the authors found that 71 percent of medical devices were approved through the FDA’s less-rigorous 510(k) process. Most of the medical devices recalled in the FDA’s highest-risk recall category (a risk of serious injury or death) were cleared for […]

In a heavy rain storm when your windshield wipers just won’t keep up, you want to be as safe as possible. Sometimes it is not even safe to pull over. You want to do something. Don’t turn on your hazard lights. The hazard lights indicate your vehicle is a hazard […]

There is something wrong with this picture – right? Putting a price tag on the medical liability system is difficult, but one 2010 study estimated it costs the United States more than $55 billion annually, or 2.4 percent of the country’s healthcare spending. In addition, experts say tens of thousands […]