NCL denounces postponement of CPSC priorities hearing

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Media Contact: Lisa McDonald, Vice President of Communications, 202-207-2829  

Washington, DC — Yesterday, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) postponed its previously scheduled priorities hearing to August 27, 2025. Priorities hearings lay the foundation for the CPSC’s annual agenda, providing a crucial forum in which experts, victims, and industry players provide the CPSC with information necessary to identify, assess, and determine how to mitigate the risk of product safety hazards.

“Safety delayed is safety denied,” said Daniel Greene, Senior Director of Consumer Protection & Product Safety at the National Consumers League. “With 49,000 deaths, 34 million injuries, and $1 trillion in societal costs attributed to product hazards each year, the American people can ill afford such delays. The CPSC must operate more efficiently and effectively. Vital proceedings on button batteries, water beads, neck floats, bassinets and cradles, and other product safety hazards hang in the balance.”

In May, NCL led a letter of 158 advocates opposing plans to eliminate the CPSC and transfer the agency’s functions to HHS.

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)       

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org. 

Medicaid cuts deepen coordinated assault on women’s healthcare  

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Media Contact: Lisa McDonald, Vice President of Communications, 202-207-2829  

Washington, DC – The National Consumers League (NCL) is speaking out against the sweeping Medicaid cuts included in Trump’s reconciliation package, warning that they come amid a dangerous, coordinated assault on women’s access to essential healthcare services. The new law imposes deep, structural reductions to Medicaid funding and blocks people who use Medicaid from getting care at Planned Parenthood, threatening the health and well-being of millions of low-income Americans, especially women who rely on the program for critical reproductive and preventive care.  This follows a recent Supreme Court decision giving states the green light to block Planned Parenthood from receiving Medicaid funds for essential healthcare services. 

“These cuts to Medicaid and attacks on women’s health are unconscionable,” said NCL Senior Director of Health Policy Lisa Bercu. “They aren’t just numbers in a budget; they translate to fewer prenatal visits, canceled pap smears, and lost access to birth control. These attacks are not about abortion, as federal funds cannot be used for abortion services. Women who depend on Medicaid are being targeted from every angle, and it’s putting their health and lives at risk.”  

When the dust settles from these preposterous cuts, the reality is that 16 million people will be left uninsured—11.8 million due to the bill itself and another 4.2 million because of the failure to renew Affordable Care Act subsidies. The bottom line is that the right to affordable, accessible healthcare should not depend on your income, gender, or zip code.  

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)       

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org. 

NCL applauds reinstatement of democratic CPSC Commissioners  

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Media Contact: Lisa McDonald, Vice President of Communications, 202-207-2829 

 Washington, DC – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit denied a request by the Trump administration to reinstate its order to illegally fire three Democratic Commissioners of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). 

“This ruling is a resounding victory for product safety and the rule of law,” said Daniel Greene, the Senior Director of Consumer Protection & Product Safety at the National Consumers League.  “Partisanship has no place at the CPSC.  Now, the CPSC can resume its lifesaving mission—preventing unnecessary deaths and injuries from dangerous household products.” 

On May 8, 2025, Commissioners Richard Trumka and Commissioner Mary T. Boyle received an email from the White House purporting to fire them.  Commissioner Alexander Hoehn-Saric did not receive such an email but had been prevented from executing his duties by the Acting Chair.  On June 13, 2025, Judge Matthew Maddox of the Maryland District Court ruled that the attempted illegal firing violated federal law and ordered the commissioners’ immediate reinstatement. 

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)      

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.   

Senate pushes cruel cuts; the National Consumers League (NCL) says most vulnerable will pay the price

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Media Contact: Lisa McDonald, Vice President of Communications, 202-207-2829   

Washington, DC — The National Consumers League (NCL) is disheartened by the Reconciliation Bill narrowly passed by the Senate (51–50), with Vice President Vance casting the deciding vote.  

“This bill is a full-on assault on healthcare, financial protections, and basic fairness for low-income Americans,” says NCL CEO Sally Greenberg.  

If signed into law, it would inflict serious harm on low-income and working-class Americans. This bill would strip millions of hard-working Americans of their health insurance, gut funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and dismantle key student loan protections.   

“It’s a cruel, backwards bill that prioritizes billionaires over working families.” Greenberg added. “It takes away the tools people need to stay healthy, financially stable, and above water—just to hand more money to the already powerful.” 

Far from promoting fiscal responsibility, the bill punishes everyday Americans by dismantling the programs they rely on, while billionaires and corporate interests walk away richer and less accountable. 

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)        

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.     

Lisa Bercu joins NCL as Senior Director of Health Policy

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Media Contact: Lisa McDonald, Vice President of Communications, 202-207-2829 

Washington, DC – The National Consumers League (NCL), America’s pioneering consumer advocacy organization, is pleased to announce Lisa Bercu as the new Senior Director of Health Policy. Ms. Bercu brings more than a decade of experience in health policy, regulatory affairs, and legislative advocacy to her new role. 

Before joining the League, Lisa spent eight years at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), where she served as Senior Regulatory Counsel in the Office of Generic Drugs and later as Senior Advisor to the Deputy Commissioner for Policy, Legislation, and International Affairs. Her extensive work at the FDA helped shape key policies related to drug access and patient safety.  

Prior to her federal service, Lisa held positions in congressional and regulatory affairs at both a medical society and a reproductive health organization, where she advanced initiatives focused on patient care and public health. 

Lisa earned her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and her B.A. from the University of Michigan. 

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)      

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.