Comments of Sally Greenberg, Executive Director of National Consumers League, before the Food and Drug Administration panel on post-approval long-term breast implant studies – National Consumers League

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August 31, 2011

 

Contact: NCL Communications, (202) 835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Good Morning. My name is Sally Greenberg and I am Executive Director of the National Consumers League, an organization founded in 1899 dedicated to protecting the rights of consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. NCL has throughout its history been concerned about the welfare of women and their health.

I am here today because of our commitment to patient safety and our concern that the FDA sometimes relies on post-market studies to ensure safety and effectiveness of new medical products, but then does not make sure those post-market studies are completed appropriately.

I am not an expert on breast implants, but as a consumer advocate, I know that comprehensive and well-conducted scientific research is essential to ensure the safety of all implanted medical devices. If a researcher loses track of half of the patients, those findings are not useful for determining safety.

The Mentor large study lost track of 79 percent of their patients within just 3 years. In addition, Allergan lost track of almost half their augmentation patients after only two years. The Adjunct studies were even worse, with less than one-quarter of their patients still in the studies after 5 years. In their Core study, Mentor followed only 58 percent of their patients for 8 years.

None of those studies met the very reasonable standards that the FDA has set for competent research.  I understand that yesterday, several panel members asked if the FDA has ever threatened to rescind approval if a company does not complete post-market study requirements.  I think that is a good question, because if these companies have a track record of poor research, study after study, what incentive do they have to improve their procedures and processes  the next time a study is commissioned?

We want consumers to have safe choices, and that means that well designed and well-conducted studies are needed to provide bona fide informed consent for patients.  Patients cannot make safe choices on a long-term implanted device if there are no studies of long-term risks.

I was also amazed to learn that the patients in the breast implant studies apparently paid full price for their implants and all their medical care.  One of the major incentives for keeping patients in studies is to provide free medical exams.  They should have provided free MRIs so that FDA would have good data on breast implant breakage and leakage.

American patients should expect better from those who are commissioned to conduct studies. The FDA should expect better.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak.

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About the National Consumers League

The National Consumers League is America’s pioneering consumer organization, dedicated to promoting and protecting the rights of workers and consumers in American and abroad. To learn more, please visit www.nclnet.org

National Consumers League Statement on the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial – National Consumers League

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August 24, 2011

Contact: NCL Communications, (202) 835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, DC — The National Consumers League released the following statement from Executive Director Sally Greenberg and Chair Jane King on the dedication of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial:

The National Consumers League staff and board of directors welcome the long-awaited, permanent tribute to the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. that now stands alongside other memorials honoring our nation’s greatest leaders, who have stood for liberty and justice for all Americans through the generations. The King National Memorial honors a man of great courage, conviction and strength, a visionary who maintained his commitment to nonviolence as he demanded human dignity and opportunity for all. Florence Kelley, who was NCL’s first leader from the time of its founding in 1899 until 1932, served on the founding board of the NAACP. Kelley set the tone for the League’s work: to defend the rights of workers and consumers of all races and creeds to be treated with dignity and respect. She would have surely celebrated the memorial to a great a leader like Dr. King.

This new memorial on the national mall will create a richer experience for every person who walks there, and provide an opportunity to draw deeper meaning from the American experience and Dr. King’s role in advancing our country’s progression as  a nation that judges its citizens by the content of their character and not the color of their skin.

For NCL, the memorial will serve as an important source of inspiration, right here in our midst, to carry on with our work in securing the fulfillment of Dr. King’s dream of justice under the law, greater opportunity for all and an America that truly lives up to its historic promise.

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About the National Consumers League

The National Consumers League is America’s pioneering consumer organization, dedicated to promoting and protecting the rights of workers and consumers in American and abroad. To learn more, please visit www.nclnet.org

Advice for parents: Manage children’s after-school use of technology – National Consumers League

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August 24, 2011

Contact: NCL Communications, (202) 835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, DC—As millions of children across the country kick off a new school year this month, family schedules will return once again to classes, homework, and busy after-school routines. Many working parents may be concerned with how their kids will be using the TV, the Internet, or one of the many wireless devices at kids’ disposal. Costs, appropriate content, and privacy protections are just a few issues on parents’ minds when it comes to these devices and services. The National Consumers League (NCL) has developed new tools to help parents understand the resources at their disposal for monitoring and – where desired – restricting their children’s activities, even when they can’t be there in person.

American teens and tweens are using technology independently from their parents more than ever before, with some 75 percent of 12-17 year-olds now owning cell phones, and 93 percent of American teens using the Internet, according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project. Research from the American Academy of Pediatrics, founds that kids between the ages of 3 and 5 are exposed to an average of 73 minutes of TV, video games, or DVD-watching every day. The AAP report also found that young children exposed to violent content are more likely to experience sleeping problems, and those with TVs in their rooms are even more at risk.

Too much screen-time and exposure to inappropriate content aren’t the only issues for parents. According to OTX and the Intelligence Group, 58 percent of teens make purchases online and the average teen spends $46 per month on such purchases. Given recession-strapped household budgets, it’s more important than ever for parents to help manage their children’s online shopping habits.

“Many parents are aware that there is plenty of adult content out there that they don’t want their children to get their hands on. What they may not know is that there are many tools available to monitor and restrict kids’ access to that content,” said Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director. “NCL has surveyed what is available for parents looking to put in place reasonable restrictions, and posted the information on our Web site in an easy-to-use format for parents to better understand their options – many of which are free.”

NCL’s new tools are available at www.nclnet.org, and focus on the places children are most likely to access objectionable content—television, cable and satellite, wireless communications, and the Internet—and include tips both on how to access existing parental controls features and how to talk to children about appropriate limits.

NCL acknowledges Verizon for an unrestricted educational grant that made the consumer content possible.

“Raising consumer awareness about the availability and utility of parental control technologies is essential given the ubiquity of communications technologies,” said Kathy Brown, Verizon’s Senior Vice President for Public Policy and Corporate Responsibility. “Empowering consumers to take control of their families’ technology use is an important goal in today’s always-on, interconnected world.”

NCL’s advice for parents includes tips ranging from how to talk to children about what is acceptable to where the best place is to set up a family computer. Parents are encouraged to find out where they’re spending their time online, have open and honest dialogue, and to not let concerns about invading their children’s privacy stop them from doing your job as a parent.

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About the National Consumers League

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 continues to denounce the Corn Refiners Association’s petition to mask High Fructose Corn Syrup using “Corn Sugar” – National Consumers League

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August 3, 2011

Contact: NCL Communications, (202) 835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, DC– In a letter sent to the FDA today, the National Consumers League (NCL) continues to urge the FDA to oppose the Corn Refiners Associations’ (CRA) petition to change the name of High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS), under the grounds that the name change would be contrary to public policy, inconsistent with emerging scientific evidence, and not in accordance with the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic act.

There are a number of legitimate reasons why many consumers wish to avoid foods made with HFCS. The scientific community is actively researching the health effects of HFCS.  Preliminary studies have shown that HFCS consumption may be linked with a number of adverse and interrelated diseases and health conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, obesity, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, fatty liver disease and certain forms of cancer. Leading medical authorities have noted the nature of the emerging research in the area.

The FDA has a statutory responsibility to honor to ensure that consumers have the opportunity to exercise free choice in the marketplace without being misled by confusing name changes designed to hide the identify of ingredients contained in a food product.

Consumers rely on FDA to ensure honesty and fair dealing in the marketplace without interference by commercial interests that claim to speak for the public.   Emerging scientific and nutritional studies are suggesting differences between high fructose corn syrup and sugar.  If it should turn out that HFCS contributes to health problems, a regulatory decision allowing manufacturers to hide this ingredient from consumers would be a great disservice to the public and inconsistent with FDA’s statutory mandate.

To read the full letter, please click here.

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About the National Consumers League

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 joins 9 other groups in calling on Administration to fill upcoming Commissioner vacancy on the Consumer Product Safety Commission – National Consumers League

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August 3, 2011

Contact: NCL Communications, (202) 835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, DC– Breast Cancer Fund (BCF), Consumer Federation of America (CFA), Consumers Union (CU), Kids In Danger (KID), National Consumers League (NCL), National Research Center for Women & Families (NRCWF), Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Public Citizen (PU), U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), and the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) urged President Obama to quickly nominate a Commissioner at the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in a letter sent today.

After serving three terms (16 years) of distinguished service, Commissioner Thomas Moore will leave the CPSC on October 26th, 2011, leaving an unfilled Commissioner slot, which could have unfortunate consequences for the CPSC and for consumers.

If Commissioner Moore’s vacancy is not filled before he must leave the CPSC, the Commission will unfortunately be hampered by a deadlock. Without a full complement of Commissioners, the agency may be prevented from making final decisions on numerous safety matters. The Commission has had close (3-2) votes about lead limits for children’s products, the implementation of the consumer incident database, and extending the deadline for compliance with the crib standard. The Commission has been working hard to meet its Congressional mandates as required by the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). This progress would not have been possible without five CPSC Commissioners in place.

The CPSC is committed to the mission of protecting consumers from hazards posed by unsafe products and needs all five Commissioners to work effectively. A vacancy at the Commission could place CPSC progress on key safety issues in jeopardy.

To read the complete letter, click here

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About the National Consumers League

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

Death of two 14-year-olds girls in an Illinois field underscores the need for an overhaul of U.S. child labor laws, groups condemn new laws that weaken protections for young workers – National Consumers League

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August 1, 2011

Contacts: Reid Maki, Coordinator, Child Labor Coalition (202) 207-2820, reidm@nclnet.org & Nick Grisewood, Executive Director, Global March +353 61921685, nick@globalmarch.org

Washington, DC—The tragic death of two 14-year-old girls while detasseling corn in Tampico, Illinois last week stands as a painful reminder that U.S. child labor laws are inadequate and efforts by states to weaken current protections are further endangering the lives of American children.

Hannah Kendall and Jade Garza, two friends from Sterling, Illinois, were electrocuted while they worked with a crew of about 70 others, including workers as young as 13. Ten workers were injured in the electrocution incident whose cause is still unknown. According to news reports, the girls were employed by Monsanto Corporation, which was acting as a contractor. They worked in a muddy field, detasseling corn—a common job for many teenagers in the Midwest that involves removing tassels to encourage cross-pollination—when they received a shock from a nearby center pivot irrigation system. Fourteen-year-old Delanie Knapp, was taken to a Rockford hospital and listed in “serious” condition. Seven other workers were taken to the hospital and released.

“We are devastated by this terrible news and our thoughts go out to the families of these young workers,” said Sally Greenberg, the co-chair of the Child Labor Coalition (CLC) and the executive director of the National Consumers League (NCL). “Across the nation, legislators in Maine and Wisconsin have weakened child labor laws by allowing teens to work longer hours in recent months. In Missouri, the state’s child labor inspection team was eliminated. Legislators need to know that child labor laws save lives and any weakening of protections has very serious potential consequences.”

Agriculture is consistently ranked as one of the two or three most dangerous industries in the U.S. Each year, NCL produces an annual report titled, “The Five Most Dangerous Jobs for Teens” and agriculture regularly tops the list. “Young teen should not be allowed to work in the fields, given the dangers posed by chemical fertilizers and pesticides, as well as heavy machinery and razor-sharp tools,” said Reid Maki, coordinator of the CLC, which believes that 14- and 15-year-olds should only be allowed to perform agricultural jobs deemed safe for them by the Secretary of  Labor after careful evaluation. In March of this year, two 18-year-old Illinois teens were electrocuted as they worked with irrigation piping.

“As a child, I spent every summer since the age of 12 detasseling cornfields in Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa,” said Norma Flores López. “This work is grueling and puts children’s health at risk, yet exemptions to U.S. child labor laws allow 12- and 13-year-olds to perform back-breaking farm labor for very low pay.” Flores López is the Director of the Children in the Fields Campaign for the Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs and the chair of the CLC’s Domestic Committee.

The CLC strives to protect children around the world, including the estimated 300,000 to 400,000 children of migrant and seasonal farmworkers in the U.S. who work long hours in the fields. The CLC is working to help pass the Children’s Act for Responsible Employment (CARE), HR 2234, federal legislation to remove the child labor exemptions for agriculture and prohibit farm work for kids under 14 (unless children are working on a family farm for their parents). The proposed law would require the U.S. Secretary of Labor to determine if specific farm jobs like detasseling corn are safe enough for 14-and 15-year-olds to perform and would prevent 16- and 17-year-olds from doing agricultural jobs already determined to be hazardous.

“Children working as farm laborers suffer serious educational impacts in addition to the physical health threats,” said Toni Cortese, the Secretary-Treasurer of the American Federation of Teachers, which represents 1.5 million public service employees. “They drop out at rates several times that of other kids because they miss so much school and experience so many disruptions in their education. They are sacrificing their futures to put fruits and vegetables on our tables and it isn’t right.”

“The U.S. has worked diligently to reduce child labor around the world, but it must address its own child labor problem,” said Kailash Satyarthi, Chairperson of the Global March Against Child Labor. “Internationally, child labor in agriculture is the most frequent type of child labor, experienced by 60 to 70 percent of child laborers around the world. The conditions experienced by migrant children in the U.S. are not much different than the conditions experienced by child laborers in the cocoa fields of Ghana or the school children who are forced to pick cotton in Uzbekistan.”

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About the Child Labor Coalition. The Child Labor Coalition is composed of 28 organizations, representing consumers, labor unions, educators, human rights and labor rights groups, child advocacy groups, and religious and women’s groups. It was established in 1989, and is co-chaired by the National Consumers League and the American Federation of Teachers. Its mission is to protect working youth and to promote legislation, programs, and initiatives to end child labor exploitation in the United States and abroad.

About the Global March Against Child Labor. The Global March Against Child Labour was established in 1998 to plan and coordinate a worldwide social mobilisation effort involving thousands of organisations and people in all four corners of the globe to raise awareness of child labour and to support the adoption of ILO Convention No. 182 on worst forms of child labour in Geneva in 1999. It is a global network of trade union, teachers’ and civil society organisations that work together towards the shared development goals of  eliminating and preventing all forms of child labour and ensuring access by all children to free, meaningful and good quality public education. Global March mobilises and supports its constituents to contribute to local, national, regional and global efforts and support for a range of international instruments relating to the protection and promotion of children’s rights and engages with UN and international and inter-governmental agencies on the same.

NCL urges ACIP to consider the routine early childhood vaccination with the meningococcal vaccine – National Consumers League

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August 1, 2011

Washington, DC- In a letter sent today, the National Consumers League (NCL), the nation’s oldest consumer organization, founded in 1899, urges the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) to give serious consideration to recommending “routine” vaccination of children under age two with the meningococcal vaccine when it considers meningococcal vaccine at its upcoming October 25-26, 2011 and February 22-23, 2012 meetings.

To read the full letter, please click here.

 

 

NCL calls on the FDA to investigate misleading labeling on David Sunflower Seed products – National Consumers League

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July 28, 2011

Contact: NCL Communications, (202) 835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, DC–The National Consumers League (NCL) today sent a letter to Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, M.D. Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), calling on her agency to review the misleading nutrition facts labeling of David Sunflower Seed products, manufactured by ConAgra Foods, Inc.

“The David Sunflower Seed nutrition panel is terribly misleading,” said NCL Executive Director Sally Greenberg. “The sodium listed is for the kernels only – not for the whole seed. But the back of the package instructs consumers to put the whole seed in their mouth, and in the process, they consume far more sodium than indicated on the panel.”

The fine print on the package, tucked below the list of ingredients, makes clear that when calculating the salt content of both the seed and the shell, the sodium count rises 833% to 1260mg of sodium per serving. A 5.25-ounce bag has 2.5 servings. Consuming a single 5.25 bag would mean a sodium intake of 3,150 mg. Current dietary guidelines recommend that healthy adults should consume no more than 2,300 mg of sodium per day. Thus, consuming a single 5.25-ounce bag of sunflower seeds would put one’s sodium intake at 850 mg over the recommended daily amounts.

NCL’s letter asks the agency to require the company to indicate a far higher content than is currently listed for sodium and to do so in the place where consumers expect to find it.

“These David Sunflower seeds, when consumed in the way the package recommends, are loaded with sodium. Excessive sodium intake is a leading cause of hypertension or high blood pressure. Hypertension, in turn, greatly increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, the first and third leading causes of death in the United States.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, two out of three (66%) adults in the United States are at especially high risk for health problems from too much sodium – three groups in particular are at risk: those over 40 years old, African Americans and those with high blood pressure. CDC recommends eating less sodium as a means of preventing, lowering or controlling blood pressure.

“With so many Americans suffering from hypertension or pre-hypertension, we need clear and accurate labeling of products so consumers can make healthy choices. We call on the FDA to require that David Sunflower Seed packages indicate clearly – in the place where consumers expect to find it – the sodium content in the seeds and not simply in the kernel.”

Click here to view NCL’s letter to the FDA.

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About the National Consumers League

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

NCL denounces H.R. 2587 which would eliminate key worker protections, legalize retaliation against workers for exercising their rights – National Consumers League

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July 26, 2011

Contact: NCL Communications, (202) 835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, DC–The National Consumers League’s Sally Greenberg issued the following statement denouncing the introduction of H.R. 2587, ‘Protecting Jobs From Government Interference Act’ which would allow companies to eliminate or outsource work in violation of workers’ rights under the National Labor Relations Act:

The National Consumers League (NCL), which has been protecting and promoting social and economic justice for workers and consumers in the United States and abroad for 112 years, opposes H.R. 2587, ‘Protecting Jobs From Government Interference Act’.

H.R. 2587 would remove the only meaningful remedy available to workers if a company illegally moves operations or eliminates work because workers engaged in protected activities such as organizing a union. An employer can outsource for any reason, except for an unlawful reason. Retaliating against workers for exercising their rights under the National Labor Relations Act is one unlawful reason.

The National Labor Relations Board plays a historic and invaluable role as the body mandated to interpret our nation’s labor laws.  H.R. 2587 would strip away a critical tool in the board’s mandated to safeguard employees’ rights to organize, and to prevent and remedy unfair labor practices committed by employers and unions.

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About the National Consumers League

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.

National Consumers League hails the launch of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; first ever agency to provide consumers with protections in financial transactions – National Consumers League

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July 25, 2011

Contact: NCL Communications, (202) 835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, D.C.— Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Act one year ago. This was a sweeping financial reform law designed to overhaul the nation’s financial regulatory system.  On July 21, 2011, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), created through the Dodd Frank Act, opened its doors.

This is the first federal agency solely devoted to fighting for the financial protections of average Americans. CFPB has already stood up for consumers by fighting to make lending terms clearer and advocating for commonsense disclosures that plainly detail fees and penalties.

“The tricks and traps in mortgages, credit card agreements, cell phone contracts and so many other documents consumers must sign to get goods and services will now be subject to scrutiny from an outside consumer protection agency,” said Sally Greenberg, NCL’s Executive Director. Greenberg continued, “Predatory mortgage lending was central to the housing crisis and the hardest hit consumers were lower income and communities of color. As consumer advocates, we welcome the oversight that CFPB will provide over products and services that can help families secure financial stability.”

NCL strongly backs the nomination of Elizabeth Warren to head the agency, however members of Congress made it clear they would not support her nomination. Today NCL supports the newly nominated former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray to head the agency. Cordray has a reputation as a spirited advocate for families, and in the past has taken on deceptive mortgage servicing practices that were robbing people of their homes. In the process, he also recaptured $2 billion dollars for retirees.

“NCL decries efforts to block Cordray’s nomination or dilute CFPB’s authority by handing decision-making power to a commission. This will only harm American consumers and hinder the ability of CPFB to deliver relief to so many families,” said Sally Greenberg.

“CFPB must not fall victim to politics. We need a strong CFPB to enforce our nation’s consumer protection laws and help put consumers on a level playing field with banks and other financial institutions,” Greenberg noted.

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About the National Consumers League

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.