Consumer Watchdog – Keeping Politicians Honest - More

Jones/Feuer Effort Defeated; Schwarzenegger/Leno Bill Clears Legislature Allowing Insurers to Charge "Unreasonable" and "Unjustified" Premiums
 
Santa Monica, CA – Sacramento lawmakers, buffeted by hundreds of thousands of dollars in insurance company contributions, defeated a strong insurance rate reform bill supported by consumer and labor organization (AB 2578- Jones/Feuer) late Tuesday night. Democratic opponents of the Jones/Feuer legislation supported an alternative bill, proposed by Governor Schwarzenegger and carried by Senator Mark Leno (SB 1163), that allows insurers to charge excessive health insurance premiums under a new, industry-preferred standard that merely requires rates to be "actuarially sound."  

Actuarial Soundness” Defense Protects Insurers At Expense of Rate Regulation, Consumer Watchdog Says

Physicians Must Disclose If They Own CT, MRI or PET Scanners

Jamie Court, president of Consumer Watchdog, a national consumer advocacy group based in Santa Monica, Calif., said the new disclosure requirement may eventually lead patients to think hard about the financial relationship their doctor has. But in the short term, he said, the law will have little impact. "People will still defer to the white coat."

The $1-million grants, which went to all but five states, will help many expand public access to information about rate hikes and hire experts to review proposed charges.

In California, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration specifically ruled out seeking prior approval authority. Consumer Watchdog, a Santa Monica-based advocacy group, urged the administration to reject California's grant application, saying the grant would "prevent, not develop, any effective state regulation of health insurance rates." California nonetheless received its grant, which is to be used to streamline collection of data on proposed rate hikes.

Insurance Commissioners and Obama Administration Must Resist More Weakening of Curbs on Industry Overhead and Profit, Says Consumer Watchdog

The nonprofit group Consumer Watchdog is seeking to determine the extent of the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration's use of Google Earth in its investigations, spokesman John M. Simpson said last week. Federal contracting records reviewed by Consumer Watchdog show that the FBI has spent more than $600,000 on Google Earth since 2007. The Drug Enforcement Administration, meanwhile, has spent more than $67,000. Simpson has called on Congress to investigate how U.S. law enforcement and intelligence communities are using Google technologies. The group says it has concerns that data could be used for racial profiling.