Consumer news across the country

Phone scheme hits Idaho
Police are warning about a new round of phone calls that promise big winnings from a sweepstakes prize. The caller introduces himself as an employee of the Federal Bureau of Consumer Protection Affairs, a made-up agency. (KPVI-TV)

Insurance company sued over health plans
A national insurance company is being sued for selling fixed-payment health plans that, according to plaintiffs, violated minimum standards in the State of Washington and had not been authorized by the state. (Seattle Times)

CR Health.org has a report that can help you tell whether your health plan provides good coverage.

Connecticut company recalls sprouts
Consumers were warned that sprout products produced by Amalgamated Produce Inc. (API) of Bridgeport, Conn., are being recalled.  A sample collected from a supermarket in New York tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.  The sprouts have been carried by major grocery stores in Connecticut. (Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection)

Consumer Reporter has more on food safety.

States list more top consumer complaints

North Carolina's hit list
Concerns about health care topped the list of consumer complaints to the North Carolina Attorney General's office in 2008.

A total of 4,202 state residents filed complaints about insurers, health-care providers, health products and services, the AG's office says. It was the fifth consecutive year that health care topped the list.

Other top consumer complaints: unwanted telemarketing calls, lenders, credit issues such as debt collectors and identity theft, car repair and towing services.
Charlotte Business Journal

Biggest complaints in Utah
The state's consumer agency reports that its top 10 complaint list for 2008 includes Internet offers, retail sales, home repair, coaching services, and alarm systems. 
Utah Division of Consumer Protection

NY State reclaims $14.2 million for consumers
The New York State Insurance Department says it has recovered $14.2 million for 3,164 consumers and health care providers from insurance companies between October 2008 and March 2009.

The cases included a dispute over health coverage for a premature baby who needed heart surgery and the claim of an 85-year-old grandmother who was the victim of a hit-and-run case.
NY State Insurance Department

How to get help
If you have a consumer complaint, here's advice on how to get satisfaction.
CR Money Adviser

Injured workers find a "world of hurt"

The New York Times starts a new series today examining the challenges faced by injured workers in New York State, as they deal with the vast bureaucracy that is the state's Workers' Compensation Board. According to the paper, which spent 18 months investigating the issue, the $5.5 billion agency is a "subbasement of the legal world," that "struggles to treat workers with due speed, protect employers from fraud or mute tensions in the workplace."

The difficulties facing workers, who can "wait months or years for money or care" don't come as a surprise to anyone who has followed the issue. In 2000, Consumer Reports published its own investigation, "Workers Comp: Falling down on the job," which found many of the same issues affecting workers across the country.

According to our report, in many cases, medical care wasn't available "without a struggle." The system, designed to help workers who suffer work-related injuries get the care they need, instead forced "ill and injured workers now [to] fight a series of battles: first, to get medical care; next, to withstand exams by insurance-company doctors who have an incentive to find excuses not to pay; then, to get a fair assessment of any permanent disability; and finally, to win a hearing if there’s a dispute."

Judging from the article in the Times, the past decade has brought little improvement. Injured wokers face a system that is "dysfunction and ... adversarial." Across the state, "in about one in six cases, insurers dispute that injuries are real or were suffered on the job. Until recently, these cases had averaged nearly nine months to resolve. And many of them remain unresolved years later."

Obama goes online to talk about the economy

President Barack Obama hosted an online town hall meeting today from the White House.

The president answered 12 questions in a little more than an hour--six were from the web site and six were from the audience. About 3.5 million people voted on which questions should be asked, the president said.

The White House said that 104,081 questions were submitted by 92,933 people and that about 67,000 people watched on WhiteHouse.gov, in addition to those who watched on television. 

The general topic was the struggling economy, but the questions ranged from the job market to small business loans to what the government is doing about the auto industry.

The president did answer one question which wasn't officially asked, but was one of the most popular topics in the voting on WhiteHouse.gov.

"I have to say that there was one question that was voted on that ranked fairly high and that was whether legalizing marijuana would improve the economy and job creation," Obama said with a chuckle. "And I don't know what this says about the online audience, but I just want--I don't want people to think that--this was a fairly popular question; we want to make sure that it was answered. The answer is, no, I don't think that is a good strategy ... to grow our economy."

Labor Department details COBRA changes in stimulus bill

As layoffs continue across the country, sky-high health care costs are a concern for anyone who has lost, or is danger of losing, their job.

COBRA, the provision which allows you to keep paying for your health insurance at your employer's rate if you lose your job, got bulked up in the stimulus bill, and today the Labor Department explained some of the changes.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act allows people who lost their jobs between September 1, 2008 through December 31, 2009 to pay reduced premiums if they elect COBRA, according to the Labor Department.

Eligible individuals pay only 35 percent of the full COBRA premiums under their plans for up to nine months, the department said.

"These programs are vitally important to the economic well-being of people who lost their jobs," Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said in a statement.

"The ARRA provides a 65 percent tax subsidy for the cost of health benefits, making them more affordable for the unemployed and their families. Millions of individuals, including those who previously declined employer-provided coverage under COBRA, will be eligible to receive a subsidy on their premiums for up to nine months."

For an explanation of what COBRA is and how it works, check the CR Health Blog's Buzzword: COBRA.

For details about the changes coming out of the stimulus package, check the Labor Department's COBRA page and question and answer page.