Latest Consumer Watchdog Stories
DANVILLE, Calif., May 21, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is being released by Consumer Watchdog: The father of a seven and ten year old killed by a drug addicted driver who received thousands of pills she should never have had called on the California Medical Association to apologize for calling the effort by families injured by medical negligence to tell their stories and seek stronger patient safety laws "an ill-fated publicity stunt." Bob Pack, president of the...
SANTA MONICA, Calif., May 15, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A recent change in the way Google presents its privacy policy violates the California Online Privacy Protection Act (CalOPPA) and the policy is "fundamentally deceptive," Consumer Watchdog told Attorney General Kamala Harris. "You have been a leader in the fight to protect Californians' privacy, a right that is enshrined in our State Constitution," wrote John M. Simpson, Consumer Watchdog's Privacy Project director, in a...
SANTA MONICA, Calif., May 10, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The California Medical Board took four years to suspend the license of a Central Valley doctor who gave drugs and alcohol to minors, more evidence that doctors are unaccountable when they harm patients and the public in California, said Consumer Watchdog. A Dinuba family medicine physician, Dr. Ronald Ruminson, admitted to having bought marijuana and alcohol for minors, holding parties for them in his home, and texting...
WASHINGTON, May 9, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Consumer Watchdog today praised Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA) for introducing a bi-partisan bill that would increase consumer privacy protection on mobile devices. The bill, H.R. 1913, is known as the Application Privacy, Protection and Security (APPS) Act of 2013. Among its co-sponsors is Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH). The bill would require app developers to maintain privacy policies, obtain consent from consumers before collecting data,...
SANTA MONICA & DANVILLE, Calif., May 8, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- California's Senate President Pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg told injured patients and their families gathered on the Capitol sidewalk last week that he would hold hearings into the state's nearly 38-year-old cap on victims' recovery. Jerry Brown signed the $250,000 cap on how much injured patients could receive for the loss of their quality of life in his first term as governor and it has never been indexed...
Chevron Conflict At Toxics Agency That Routinely Ignores California Environmental Quality Act Requires External and Transparent Investigation SANTA MONICA, Calif., March 18, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Consumer Watchdog today called for Governor Brown to conduct his own investigation into allegations of financial conflict of interest at the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) and to put two officials at the department on administrative leave immediately. Consumer...
SANTA MONICA, Calif., March 12, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The $7 million deal announced today ending a multi-state investigation of the Google Wi-Spy scandal does virtually nothing to thwart the Internet giant's repeated privacy violations, Consumer Watchdog said. The public interest group said Google should pay an amount that would affect its profits. In addition to the $7 million to be divided among the 38 states and the District of Columbia that were involved in the...
SACRAMENTO, Calif., March 11, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Consumer Watchdog called on the legislature to pull the plug on the Medical Board of California at hearings to renew it in Sacramento today because the board has failed in its duty to protect patients from drug dealing, over-prescribing and other dangerous doctors. The group also called for mandatory random drug testing of high-risk physicians. Bereaved families who have lost loved ones to overdoses due to reckless...
Sen. Feinstein, Rep. Schakowsky Introduce Legislation Giving HHS Power to Deny Unreasonable Health Insurance Rate Hikes When States Can't WASHINGTON and SANTA MONICA, Calif., March 7, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Blue Shield of California will impose an unreasonable rate hike as high as 19.9% on 268,000 Californians because the state's insurance commissioner does not have the power to reject unjustified health insurance premiums. Senator Dianne Feinstein and Representative Jan...
Top Managers at The Department of Toxic Substances Control Invested in Companies Holding Permits or Subject to Corrective Actions SANTA MONICA, Calif., March 6, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Consumer Watchdog today called for Governor Jerry Brown to fire two top officials at The Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) for conflicts of interest. The letter said that the officials may have violated the California Code of Regulations by holding six and seven figure interests in...
