National Consumers League supports table saw safety standard proposed by the Consumer Product Safety Commission

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December 8, 2023

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

Washington, DC – The National Consumers League (NCL) submitted comments to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) this week on the Commission’s proposed rule to require a safety standard for all table saws. The “Safety Standard Addressing Blade-Contact Injuries on Table Saws” proposal is projected to prevent more injuries and save more money than any rule ever proposed at the agency.

“NCL applauds the CPSC for moving toward a final rule to make table saws safe and to prevent the over 50,000 injuries – many of them finger amputations – that occur each year from table saw accidents,” said NCL CEO Sally Greenberg.

Pam Gilbert, NCL Board member and former Executive Director of the CPSC noted, “The matter of table saw safety has been an ongoing concern of the CPSC and National Consumers League for more than a decade; we believe this rule would finally bring much-needed safety technology to this ubiquitous woodshop tool found in millions of US households.”

Previous voluntary standards have been ineffective in preventing injuries, thus the need for this mandatory safety standard using proven effective technology that prevents serious injuries from table saws. Indeed, a 15-year trend analysis (from 2004 to 2018) of table saw injuries showed no reduction in table saw injuries from 2010 to 2018, despite the fact that a voluntary standard that became effective in 2010 required new table saws to be equipped with modular blade guard systems.

The Commission expects that the proposed rule would prevent or mitigate an estimated 49,176 injuries treated in hospital emergency departments or other medical settings per year and that net cost benefits, even when factoring the cost of the technology, would range from $1.28 billion to $2.32 billion per year.

The proposed rule would limit the depth of cut of a table saw to 3.5 mm or less when a test probe, acting as surrogate for a human finger or other body part, contacts the spinning blade at an approach rate of 1 m/s. CPSC staff estimated that the proposed rule would prevent or mitigate the severity of 54,800 medically treated blade-contact injuries annually.

To read the views of woodworkers themselves, this YouTube link tells first-hand accounts, some of which have been included in NCL’s comments. One is below:

“My father cut all four of his fingers off with a Radial arm saw years ago. Three fingers are bolted back together so he can only move them at the knuckle, the index finger was lost due to infection. He had to have a skin graft on all his fingers pulled from his thigh, so they now all grow hair so he has to shave them otherwise they grow hair. In airports, he always sets off the metal detectors. When I was looking at table saws about 8 years ago it was between the sawstop contractor (hybrid wasn’t out yet) and Powermatic 3hp cabinet. My father was with me at the time while I was a teenager at woodcraft. One look at his hand and it was obvious which saw I walked out with. 8 years later I still use the Sawstop contractor saw and it looks just like when I bought it, Its a fantastic investment and probably the only one that is relatively easy to justify to your wife. “

As Commissioner Rich Trumka, himself a woodworker, observed in his comments “…[t]he rule would provide the greatest net benefit to society of any rule in the agency’s history that I’m aware of—up to a $2.32 billion net benefit every year.”

The National Consumers League fully supports this Proposed Rule and greatly appreciates the years of dedication and work from the CPSC’s engineers, statisticians, and economists and the leadership of CPSC Chair Alex Hoehn Saric in moving this to the top of the Commission’s agenda.

NCL’s comments can be found here.

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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 nclnet.org.

PBMs claim new programs will save consumers money. Let’s take a closer look.

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By Robin Strongin, Senior Director of Health Policy

Consumers have known for quite some time now that the prescription drug pricing system is essentially a black box. Dealings among drug manufacturers, health insurers and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) establish which drugs insurance will cover and make accessible to consumers. What’s more, the prices that consumers pay for those medicines vary wildly – often leading to high out-of-pocket costs for us all.

Two of the three major PBM companies that are in the middle of this drug pricing web recently announced that they are establishing new programs (CVS’s CostVantage and Express Scripts’ ClearNetwork) that set transparent formulas for drugs with a pre-set markup and a flat fee for the PBMs. On paper, this sounds like a great idea.

But consumers would be wise to take these claims with a healthy grain of proverbial salt. We know PBMs continue to find new ways to put themselves over patients (more on that here) and we must demand answers to the issues the PBMs are still skirting. For example:

  • Will these new programs actually make prescription drugs more affordable and reduce out-of-pocket costs at the pharmacy counter? Notably, both Express Scripts and CVS Health have acknowledged that employers and plan sponsors may not save any money from this move. There is no sign either that consumers will be able to get the drugs they need for a fair price.
  • While the companies boast increased transparency, they still have not shared – nor said they will share – how much they are paying to acquire the drugs that will be dispensed to patients. PBM clients have long sought this information, but it appears that data will still be hidden in the black box.
  • In the case of CVS Health, the changes the company announced will only be effective at CVS-owned pharmacies. It will not affect how CVS will reimburse millions of prescriptions at the local and independent pharmacies it doesn’t own. A cynic might say this is just another mechanism by CVS to drive more patients to its own pharmacies.

Most notably, nothing CVS Health and Express Scripts have announced will change one of the pervasive anti-consumer elements of the drug pricing system. In their dealings with drugmakers, they can still cut deals that will determine which medicines get preferential placement. This means PBMs could continue to push consumers toward higher-priced drugs and limit access to more affordable generics and biosimilars.

It’s no coincidence that Congress is getting closer to passing PBM reform legislation that would mandate transparency, force the PBMs to pass their negotiated savings from drugmakers to consumers and remove the incentives for PBMs to push consumers to higher-priced drugs. One might say that these moves by CVS and Express Scripts are cosmetic attempts to ward off legislation by touting their own self-reforms.

But, as with so much that goes on in the drug pricing game, these “reforms” may not be what they seem. We need Congress to step in for consumers to help ensure we’re no longer facing a big disadvantage at the pharmacy counter.

Learn more about the PBM problem at nclnet.org/pbms.

NCL applauds House Commerce Committee approval of consumer protection bills

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December 6, 2023

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Consumers League (NCL), America’s oldest consumer advocacy organization, today applauded the House Commerce Committee for advancing five important consumer protection bills that would implement long-sought reforms to the live event ticketing industry, require all-in pricing in short-term lodging, crack down on online dating scams and protect consumers’ plumbing systems from “flushable” cleaning wipes.

Two bills, the TICKET Act (H.R. 3950) and the Speculative Ticketing Oversight and Prohibition Act of 2023 (STOP Act), would implement much-needed reforms in the live event ticketing industry. The TICKET Act would prohibit hidden event ticket fees by requiring sellers to display the full price—including all mandatory charges—at the beginning of the transaction and in advertising. The STOP Act would prohibit the sale of tickets that the seller does not actually possess, a controversial practice known as speculative ticketing. The bill would also crack down on deceptive “white label” ticket resale websites and require fans to be provided refunds promptly in the event that a concert is canceled or postponed.

“Live event fans achieved an important victory with today’s vote,” said NCL Vice President of Public Policy, Telecommunications, and Fraud John Breyault. “Add-on junk fees for concerts and sporting events have been the bane of consumers’ existence for decades. These reforms are long overdue and promise to make the ticket-buying experience a fairer, easier process for millions of fans.”

Additionally, the committee advanced H.R. 6543, the No Hidden Fees on Extra Expenses for Stays Act; H.R. 2964, the Wastewater Infrastructure Pollution Prevention and Environmental Safety (WIPPES) Act; and H.R. 6125, the Online Dating Safety Act of 2023.

H.R. 6543 would require all-in pricing of hotel, Airbnb, and other short-term lodgings. This will prevent unscrupulous lodging companies from advertising one price to consumers only to hit them with additional fees later. The WIPPES Act will require that disposable cleaning wipes be clearly labeled with a “Do Not Flush” label. This has the potential to reduce estimated $441 million in additional operating costs that U.S. clean water utilities incur due to the flushing of so-called “flushable” cleaning wipes. Finally, the Online Dating Safety Act would require dating websites and apps to proactively notify users that an account they messaged has been banned. Such notifications would do much to intervene in ongoing frauds and likely help to reduce the scourge of romance scams.

“By advancing these bills, the House is demonstrating that consumer protection is a bipartisan issue. We urge the full House approval for these measures,” said Breyault. “Undisclosed hotel resort junk fees have bedeviled travelers for too long, draining consumers’ travel budgets and harming honest hotel operators. Similarly, the damage from ‘flushable’ wipes harms all consumers since the costs to municipal water systems are passed along to all ratepayers. Finally romance scam victims lost $1.3 billion to fraudsters last year. Requiring dating websites to offer them more support will do much to reduce the scourge of these scams.”

The committee’s actions come after NCL testified in support of these bills in a House legislative hearing in September of this year.

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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 nclnet.org.

NCL comments on Proposed Rule – Fish and Shellfish; Canned Tuna Standard of Identity and Standard of Fill of Container

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November 21, 2023

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

The National Consumers League recently submitted comments regarding the Proposed Rule, “Fish and Shellfish; Canned Tuna Standard of Identity and Standard of Fill of Container.” We believe that the Proposed Rule, when implemented, will modernize the standard of identity for “canned tuna,” 21 C.F.R. § 161.190 (“canned tuna SOI”), to require an accurate measure and declaration of weight, and to allow for “safe and suitable” ingredients to provide manufacturers with the flexibility to keep up with changing consumer tastes.

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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 nclnet.org.

NCL comments regarding Proposed Rule: Medication Guides: Patient Medication Information Docket No. FDA-2019-N-5959

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November 21, 2023

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

The National Consumers League recently submitted comments regarding the Proposed Rule, Medication Guides: Patient Medication Information, that we believe will greatly improve the information patients receive with their prescription medicines.

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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 nclnet.org.

Congressional briefing: The path forward for a safe cannabis marketplace

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By Robin Strongin, Senior Director of Health Policy

Cannabis Consumer Watch recently hosted a briefing on Capitol Hill to educate policymakers and staff on the public health risks that exist in the current cannabis marketplace, and to offer policy solutions that would help protect consumer safety and encourage innovation for patients. The briefing was moderated by the Collaborative for Cannabinoid Science and Safety’s Libby Baney, and the panel of experts included:

Robin Stronger, Senior Director of Health Policy, National Consumers League, who explained NCL’s biggest concerns about the current cannabis marketplace. She pointed out, “Out of over 140 CD products studied by the FDA, more than half were mislabeled and nearly 40 of those products had more than 120% of the CBD level listed. Several had pesticides and even toxic mold – we just don’t know what consumers are buying. And consumers aren’t aware of the risks.”

Dale Sutherland, President & Founder, CODE 3, who shared that during his time with DC Metropolitan Police Department, they saw, “how bad distribution efforts can be – product manufacturing and transportation conditions that aren’t heavily regulated present several unique health risks.”

Sue Thau, Public Policy Consultant, CADCA highlighted the negative effects cannabis products have on children in particular, explaining, “Poison control calls related to cannabis digestion are increasing each year – and that’s just the data that we do have – there isn’t an efficient way to track all the issues parents and families face.” She provided examples of THC products that use packaging similar to popular children’s snacks or are in packaging that appeals to kids.

From consumer health to law enforcement, to concerns around youth consumption, the unique backgrounds of the panel made for a robust conversation that included multiple perspectives on the cannabis issue. To learn more about the concerns highlighted during the discussion, visit our Cannabis 101 page here.

 

NCL applauds President Biden’s landmark AI executive order 

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October 31, 2023

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

Washington, DC – Yesterday, President Biden signed an executive order to establish the most comprehensive standards to date regarding artificial intelligence (AI). The following statement is attributable to National Consumers League (NCL) Chief Executive Officer Sally Greenberg:

“NCL applauds the Biden Administration for centering consumers and workers in its landmark executive order addressing AI. It is critical that the development of artificial intelligence aligns with our democratic values, preserves civil rights, and protects consumers’ health and safety as well as our privacy. Importantly, the Biden Administration has made clear that there is no exception for AI from the law as it continues to model how policymakers should tackle this issue. While the president’s order is a critical step forward, Congress must pass a robust bill to ensure lasting and comprehensive federal law governing AI.”

As part of the sweeping executive order, federal agencies are to provide clear guidance to landlords, federal benefits administrators, and federal contractors to ensure that AI does not discriminate against consumers and beneficiaries. The president also addressed the potential harms to workers from the use of AI in workplace surveillance, job displacement, union-busting, and discriminatory hiring practices.

NCL has been advocating for consumers and workers in our push for AI regulation, including requiring the labelling of AI-generated content to minimize deception to users.

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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 nclnet.org.

 

National Consumers League supports legislation to end the tipped wage in Montgomery County, MD

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October 17, 2023

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

Washington, DC – The National Consumers League’s (NCL) CEO Sally Greenberg will testify today, October 17, before the Montgomery County Council in support of phasing out the tipped wage and providing all tipped workers the minimum wage.

Tipped workers in Montgomery County are scheduled to appear before the county council today to share their thoughts about Bill 35-23. The legislation would adjust the calculation of the minimum wage for tipped workers and phase something known as the tip credit amount.

NCL believes that the tipped wage is bad policy and keeps servers and other tipped workers at the mercy of customers’ whims on tipping. NCL also supported Initiative 82 in the District of Columbia which passed overwhelmingly and is being implemented.

As one Council member in DC noted, when considering phasing out the tipped wage, the current law “is an invitation [for employers] to cheat.” According to surveys here in the county, more than a third of Montgomery County workers say their tips did not bring their wages up to the minimum wage. In fact, in Montgomery County, restaurant workers are twice as likely to live in poverty.  The bill, introduced by Councilmember Will Jawando, will end the tipped minimum wage gradually over the next several years.

Greenberg’s full testimony can be found here.

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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 nclnet.org.

 

 

 

National Consumers League calls on auto industry to bargain fairly with workers

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September 28, 2023

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

Washington, DC – The National Consumers League (NCL), the nation’s longest-operating consumer organization, calls on the auto industry to bargain fairly with the very workers who have helped the industry become extremely profitable.

Though top-scale assembly workers earn $32.32 an hour, lower-tier workers who joined the company after 2007 earn less than $17 an hour. By comparison, many McDonald’s franchises are paying starting workers $15 per hour.

For years, the United Auto Workers (UAW) union gave up general pay raises and lost cost-of-living wage increases to help the companies control costs during tougher economic times when the industry struggled. Now, the industry is thriving. The “Big 3” auto companies—Ford, GM, and Stellantis—saw profits skyrocket 92 percent from 2013 to 2022, according to the Economic Policy Institute. Total profits of the Big 3 were $250 billion for the decade.

Today, the striking UAW union is asking for 36-percent raises in general pay over four years. Compare that to Detroit’s three automakers that have raised CEO pay by 40 percent over the past four years. Workers should get similar raises.

CEO salaries dwarf the pay of even the best-paid assembly line workers. General Motors (GM) CEO Mary Barra was paid $28.98 million in 2022; Ford CEO James Farley received nearly $21 million; and Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares’ 2022 pay was $24 million.  Barra’s pay was 362 times the median employee earnings of $80,034 at GM.

“We believe that those who work on the assembly line building America’s cars deserve the same percent of pay increases that CEOs receive,” said Sally Greenberg, CEO of NCL.  “We support those who make our cars and wish them victory in their valiant battle for fair wages and benefits.”

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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 nclnet.org.

NCL stands with Swifties in testimony before Congress

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September 27, 2023

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

WASHINGTON, DC – Testifying before a Congressional committee, the National Consumers League (NCL) today urged support for comprehensive ticketing reform legislation to fix a “rigged” live event industry. NCL, America’s oldest consumer and worker advocacy organization, described how the November 2022 meltdown of Ticketmaster’s ticketing system during the on-sale for Taylor Swift’s Era’s Tour exposed the “ugly underbelly” of the industry.

“There has never been a better time to reform live event ticketing,” said John Breyault, NCL’s Vice President for Public Policy, Telecommunications, and Fraud. “While the Taylor Swift meltdown may have been an anomaly, it exposed the ugly underbelly of a live event industry that is rigged to maximize profits for a select few and frustration for everyone else.”

Of the three event ticketing bills considered by the subcommittee, Breyault called the “BOSS and SWIFT ACT of 2023,” sponsored by Representatives Bill Pascrell (D-NJ9), Frank Pallone (D-NJ6), Julia Brownley (D-CA26), and Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) “the single most comprehensive pro-fan and pro-competition ticketing legislation before Congress.” NCL supports the BOSS and SWIFT ACT because it includes a range of ticket industry reforms, including requiring better disclosure of ticket refund policies, shedding daylight on ticket “holdbacks” that siphon tickets away from the average fan, clamping down on unauthorized speculative ticket sales, and helping protect consumers from Ticketmaster’s anti-competitive efforts to extend its monopoly into the secondary ticket market.

NCL also voiced support for two other ticketing bills: Representatives Gus Bilirakis’ (R-FL12) and Jan Schakowsky’s (D-IL9) TICKET ACT, which would mandate all-in pricing of tickets and better disclosure of speculative ticket sales, as well as draft legislation that would ban speculative ticketing outright, while carving out ticket-buying services.

In addition to the ticketing bills, NCL testified in support of Representative David Valadao’s (D-CA22) Online Dating Safety Act of 2023 which would notify users of online dating apps that someone they messaged on the app was banned; Representative Young Kim’s (R-CA40) No Hidden Fees on Extra Expenses for Stays Act, which would mandate all-in pricing in the hotel and short-term lodging industries; and Representative Lisa McClain’s (R-MI9) and Representative Mary Peltola’s (D-AK) WIPPES Act, which would require manufacturers of cleaning wipes to label their cleaning wipes as non-flushable in order to protect wastewater infrastructure and consumers’ plumbing systems from damage.

NCL’s written testimony is available here.

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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 nclnet.org.