Public comments of the National Consumers League FDA’s Nutrition Innovation Strategy – National Consumers League

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August 31, 2018

Docket Number: FDA-2018-N-2381

Dockets and Management Staff (HFA-305)
Food and Drug Administration
5630 Fishers Lane, Rm 1061
Rockville, MD 20852

Executive Summary

The National Consumers League (NCL) commends the FDA for convening a public meeting on the Multi-Year Comprehensive Nutrition Innovation Strategy. The July 26, 2018 meeting was well-attended by both food industry leaders and consumer groups, serving as an informative first conversation about modernizing FDA processes in regulating production innovation and appropriate labeling.

At the meeting, NCL’s Food and Nutrition Policy Fellow, Haley Swartz, MPP, spoke about the League’s 100-year history in advocating for a safe, nutritious, and accurately represented food marketplace. NCL has been an active participant in food labeling regulation and litigation for over three decades. We have long worked with the FDA to ensure transparency on food labels, including mislabeling on:

  • “Fresh” canned tomatoes and pasta sauce (2009);
  • Artificially sweetened dried cranberries in cranberry juice (2009); and
  • Watered-down lemon juice (2012).

We work tirelessly alongside our colleagues in the National Alliance for Nutrition and Physical Activity to ensure that blatant forms of false food advertising are eliminated from the food marketplace. We also must thank the FDA for its continual willingness to consider innovative regulatory actions. As we approach new challenges in the context of changing consumer demands and rapidly evolving technology, we are thrilled to actively participate in dialogues between the food industry, regulators, and consumers.

In this document, we delve deeper into the issues Swartz raised in her speech. We list both our enthusiasm and concerns for several specific components of the Strategy.

Click here to read full comments (PDF).

NCL statement on CFPB student loan watchdog chief’s protest resignation

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August 28, 2018

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC – Yesterday, Seth Frotman announced his resignation as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB’s) Student Loan Ombudsman. The following statement is attributable to Sally Greenberg, executive director of the National Consumers League:

“Every day Seth Frotman went to work, he valiantly fought for the 44 million Americans that are struggling with student loan debt. As Frotman wrote in his resignation letter, the Bureau under Acting Director Mick Mulvaney has abandoned its Congressionally-mandated mission to protect consumers from predatory lenders. Instead, current CFPB leadership seems to believe that its goal is to empower some of the most powerful financial interests in America to continue victimizing vulnerable students.

“Unfortunately for consumers, Frotman’s assessment of Mulvaney’s tenure is spot-on. Making matters worse, the current nominee to become the permanent CFPB Director, Kathleen Kraninger, has given every indication that she will continue Mulvaney’s work to undermine the CFPB’s ability to protect consumers. NCL urges Congress to only confirm a CFPB director who will fulfill the intent of Congress for the Bureau to protect consumers.”

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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.

Senators Duckworth, Markey to receive highest honor from nation’s pioneering consumer watchdog org – National Consumers League

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August 21, 2018

Identity Theft Resource Center’s Velasquez to be honored with Florence Kelley Consumer Leadership Award

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—The National Consumers League (NCL), the nation’s pioneering consumer and worker advocacy organization, has announced it will honor Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) with its highest honor, the Trumpeter Award, on Tuesday, October 16 in Washington, DC.

This year marks the 45th anniversary year of the Trumpeter Award, which honors leaders in the fight for consumer and worker rights. Past honorees include: Senator Ted Kennedy, the award’s inaugural recipient, as well as Labor Secretaries Hilda Solis, Robert Reich, and Alexis Herman, Senators Carl Levin and Paul Wellstone, Delores Huerta of the United Farm Workers, and other honored consumer and labor leaders. Last year’s recipients were the legendary social justice leader Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) and then-Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Richard Cordray.

The Trumpeter Award is given to leaders who have dedicated their lives to social justice and to fighting for those who cannot defend themselves. This year’s Trumpeter recipients, Senators Tammy Duckworth and Ed Markey will join this esteemed group as true American heroes.

“Senator Tammy Duckworth embodies America’s best values throughout her career, as an Iraq War Veteran, a Purple Heart recipient, and former Assistant Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs,” said NCL Executive Director Sally Greenberg. “She is an inspirational leader and justice-minded policymaker on civil rights, standing up for immigrants and veterans, and speaking out on behalf of consumers on healthcare and justice reform. We are thrilled to honor her this October with this historic award.”

“For nearly five decades, Senator Markey’s leadership has been a model for Americans of all generations,” said Greenberg. “Whether on issues dealing with commerce, protecting the environment, or in defense of privacy, healthcare, and cybersecurity, Markey’s commitment to policy that serves consumers and workers is exemplary.”

In addition to the Trumpeter Award, NCL will the honor the recipient of this year’s Florence Kelley Consumer Leadership Award: Eva Casey Velasquez, president and CEO of the Identity Theft Resource Center.

“Eva Casey Velasquez’s leadership at the Identity Theft Resource Center and her commitment to broadening public education and awareness about important issues that affect almost every consumer have earned her this honor,” said John Breyault, NCL vice president on public policy, telecommunications and fraud. “Eva’s work has helped to put consumers at the center of ID theft prevention, and we are delighted to present her with this award to honor her commitment to consumer education and protection.”

This year’s Trumpeter Awards will feature a reception, dinner, and speaking appearances by NCL leadership and the honorees, as well as Maria Cardona, CNN/CNNE Commentator & Principal of Dewey Square Group. To learn more, visit nclnet.org/about-ncl/trumpeter-awards_awards.

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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.

LifeSmarts recognizes student scholarship recipients from ‘Year of Health and Safety’ project – National Consumers League

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August 14, 2018

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—LifeSmarts, a national consumer literacy educational program and scholarship opportunity for students in grades 6-12, has announced this year’s student leaders who have been awarded scholarships for their outstanding participation in the LifeSmarts OTC Medicine Safety Mentoring Project, a program offered during LifeSmarts’ Year of Health and Safety.

The OTC Medicine Safety Mentoring Project was unveiled in 2017 and offered as a community service opportunity to this year’s LifeSmarts participants and was underwritten by a grant from Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. Through the program, LifeSmarts provided materials and curriculum, bolstered by educational resources produced by Scholastic, that enabled high school students to become mentors for middle school students to help them understand the wise use and safe storage of over-the-counter medicines.

“We are so pleased with the success of the ‘Year of Health and Safety’ and the OTC Medicine Safety Mentoring Project,” said national LifeSmarts Program Director Lisa Hertzberg. “We know LifeSmarts gives students the skills they need to succeed as adults, and we see students applying what they learn immediately at home and in their communities. We were thrilled to see our students participate in this program and the enthusiasm and creativity they exhibited in serving as student mentors to pre-teens on these crucial health and safety lessons.”

2018 Safety Mentoring Scholarship Winners

More than 500 LifeSmarts students participated in the program making presentations and holding events that reached tens of thousands of middle school students and community members across the country. Student participants submitted applications about their experiences to the National Consumers League. Scholarship criteria included the number of presentations, community impact, and a personal reflective statement, with the winners receiving a $1,000 post-secondary education scholarship. This year’s recipients are:

  • Victoria Lowrance: LaFayette, GA (12th grade)
  • Samantha Martinez: Waterbury, CT (10th grade)
  • Kejsi Ozuni: Waterbury, CT (10th grade)
  • Raymond Perez: Dallas, PA (11th grade)
  • Hannah Wolfe: Dallas, PA (10th grade)

Besides health and safety, LifeSmarts focuses on four other main content areas: consumer rights and responsibilities, personal finance, technology, and the environment. Students are quizzed on their knowledge of these subject areas during online competition. Top-performing teams then advance to statewide competitions, and state champion teams advance to the national championship held each year in a different American city. The 2018 National LifeSmarts Championship took place April 21-24 in San Diego, where the state champion team from Pennsylvania was declared this year’s national champion team. Scholarship recipients Raymond Perez and Hannah Wolfe were on this year’s national champion team.

Last year, students answered more than 3.5 million consumer questions about credit reports, recycling, nutrition, social media, state lemon laws, and everything in between. More than 140,000 students participated in the program in the 2017-18 season. LifeSmarts is active in all states and the District of Columbia, where NCL is headquartered.

“Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. is proud to be a long-standing supporter of the LifeSmarts program and thrilled about the OTC Medicine Safety Mentoring project. As a manufacturer of over-the-counter medicines, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. believes that the LifeSmarts OTC Medicine Safety Mentoring Project can help instill a healthy respect for all medicines in adolescents by teaching core concepts on the responsible use and safe storage of medicines. In doing so, we are building a healthier future for our adolescents, and helping to prevent medicine misuse, errors, and adverse events,” said Ed Kuffner M.D., Chief Medical Officer, Johnson & Johnson Consumer.

Visit LifeSmarts.org for more information.

LifeSmarts: Learn it. Live it.

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About LifeSmarts

LifeSmarts is a program of the National Consumers League. State coordinators run the programs on a volunteer basis. For more information, visit: LifeSmarts.org, email lifesmarts@nclnet.org, or call the National Consumers League’s communications department at (202) 835-3323.

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 statement on Trump Administration’s finalization of Short-Term Plan rule – National Consumers League

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August 1, 2018

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC–The National Consumers League (NCL) is deeply disappointed by the finalization of the Short-Term Limited Duration Insurance (STLDI) Plan *rule, which allows the sale of short-term health insurance plans that do not comply with the requirements of the Affordable Care Act.

The following statement may be attributed to Sally Greenberg, NCL executive director:

“The ‘short-term plan’ final rule will allow insurers to offer junk insurance policies to millions of consumers that fail to meet their healthcare needs. Short-term plans exclude coverage for critically important healthcare services; vary premium rates by gender, health status, and age; and put individuals and families at significant financial risk from unpaid medical bills.

In addition, allowing the expansion of these types of plans for periods up to 364 days (and renewal for up to 3 years) undermines the individual market by pulling healthy individuals away and leaving an older, sicker risk pool behind. As a result of this rule, we fear that many who rely on comprehensive coverage – including women, older adults, and people with chronic conditions – will be left without affordable, comprehensive coverage options.”  

*Links are no longer active as the original sources have removed the content, sometimes due to federal website changes or restructurings.

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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 *https://nclnet.org.

NCL’s statement on Trump Administration’s proposed rule on Title X – National Consumers League

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August 1, 2018

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—In response to the Trump Administration’s proposed rule on the Title X health care program, the National Consumers League (NCL) has issued the following statement, which may be attributed to Sally Greenberg, NCL executive director:

As a long-time supporter of the Title X Family Planning Program, the National Consumers League (NCL) has significant concerns about the Trump Administration’s Title X “Compliance with Statutory Program Requirements” proposed rule, that would restrict the ability of millions of patients to obtain contraception and preventative care. The proposed rule would also make it significantly more difficult for physicians to explain reproductive health care options, such as family planning services.

NCL strongly believes that the Title X Family Planning Program is integral in providing women and teenagers with reproductive and preventive healthcare services across the United States. In fact, Title X centers have helped to prevent 1 million unintended pregnancies each year. These centers are important because they provide a wide range of preventive healthcare services, such as: wellness exams, birth control, contraception education, and lifesaving cervical and breast cancer screenings.

If HHS implements the proposed rule, there will be extremely detrimental effects on patients in regions of the United States with limited access to health care, as well as economically distressed adults and teenagers without health insurance. If implemented, the proposed rule would seriously restrict the ability of clinicians to explain contraceptive and reproductive healthcare options to their patients. Healthcare education and information is key in order for consumers to make informed choices.

Furthermore, NCL is very concerned about the implications of this proposed rule when it comes to the millions of patients that use Title X services. This proposed rule could result in 40 percent of patients that currently visit Title X centers losing their healthcare services.

NCL urges HHS to analyze all the possible effects that this proposed rule could have on vulnerable populations in the United States before making such sweeping changes to the Title X health care program.

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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 https://nclnet.org.

NCL Statement on FDA Importation Work Group – National Consumers League

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July 30, 2018

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—In response to the recent request by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) establish a working group to examine the possibility of importing prescription drugs, the National Consumers League has issued the following statement, which may be attributed to Sally Greenberg, NCL executive director:

While the National Consumers League (NCL) supports the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) goal of ensuring patient access to medically necessary drugs that are in shortage, we have significant concerns about allowing importation to address this challenge.

NCL believes that allowing importation could put patient health and safety at risk and lead us down a dangerous path. Every head of Health and Human Services and the FDA for the last 18 years has refused to certify the safety of drug importation. NCL fears that authorizing importation, even under limited circumstances to address drug shortages, would expose consumers to unknown risks and undermine the security of the U.S. pharmaceutical supply chain.

Furthermore, NCL is concerned that allowing importation will open the U.S. market to a flood of counterfeit and/or substandard drugs. Counterfeit medications made with deadly ingredients have been found in over 40 states across America, posing a significant public health threat. Allowing importation will only serve to exacerbate the challenge of preventing counterfeit drugs from reaching American patients.

Rather than considering importation, NCL encourages FDA to pursue other strategies to ensure the availability of multiple FDA-approved and marketed versions of medically necessary drugs.

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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 https://nclnet.org.

Joint consumer advocacy letter urges senators to support bipartisan FAIR fees provision – National Consumers League

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July 25, 2018

The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Senate Majority Leader
United States Senate
317 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Charles Schumer
Senate Minority Leader
United States Senate
322 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

 

Dear Majority Leader McConnell and Minority Leader Schumer,

The undersigned 8 consumer advocacy organizations urge you to support the bipartisan FAIR Fees provision that was included in S.1405, the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act of 2017. This provision would help ensure that the ancillary fees which airlines are increasingly adding to the base cost of a ticket are reasonable.

Airlines often claim that the unbundling of fees for services like baggage and cancellation has reduced the cost of flying. However, an independent analysis by the Associated Press has found that base fares have increased by 5% once adjusted for inflation since 2010.[i] Likewise, the Government Accountability Office has found that the cost of flying has increased, once fees for checked baggage are included.[ii]

Under the FAIR Fees provision, section 3129 of the reported bill,[iii] airlines would be prevented from charging flight change and cancellation fees that are unreasonable and disproportionate to the cost of providing the service. The Department of Transportation would also develop standards for helping assess the reasonableness of other common airline fees.

Flight change and cancellation fees can range anywhere from $125, to as much as $750 for an international flight.[iv] While testifying before a US Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation subcommittee, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby admitted that change fees are “not a direct cost when somebody changes,” but rather are a revenue generator.[v] While airlines certainly need to maintain profitability, they should not do so by taking unfair advantage of consumers who must change or cancel travel plans due to unforeseen circumstances. Requiring that change and cancellation fees bear a reasonable relation to the cost to provide the service will improve competition by preventing price gouging and better incentivizing airlines to compete over the actual cost of fares.

For these reasons, the undersigned consumer advocacy organizations urge you to support keeping the bipartisan FAIR Fees provision in the FAA Reauthorization Act.

 

Sincerely,

Business Travel Coalition
Consumer Action
Consumer Federation of America
Consumers Union
Flyers Rights
National Consumers League
Travelers United
U.S. PIRG

cc: Members of the US Senate

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[i] Mayerowitz, Scott and Koenig, David. "U.S. airports increasingly dominated by 1 or 2 carriers.” USA Today. July 15, 2015. Online: https://www.usatoday.com/story/todayinthesky/2015/07/15/us-airports-increasingly-dominated-by-1-or-2-carriers/30152927/
[ii] Government Accountability Office. “Commercial aviation: Information on airline fees for optional services” September 2017. Online: https://www.gao.gov/assets/690/687258.pdf
[iii] Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act of 2017. Online: https://www.congress.gov/115/bills/s1405/BILLS-115s1405rs.pdf
[iv] American Airlines. “Optional service fees.” July 17, 2018. Online. https://www.aa.com/i18n/customer-service/support/optional-service-fees.jsp
[v] Senate Commerce Science and Transportation Subcommittee on Aviation, Operations, Safety and Security. “Questions, answers and perspectives in the current state of airline travel. May 4, 2017. 01:28:55-01:33:48. Online: https://www.commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/hearings?ID=C3586801-EFA9-493C-B3FB-74779C0AC3D2

Coalition of consumer advocacy groups send letter DC Council regarding auto-renewal – National Consumers League

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July 19, 2018

The Honorable Charles Allen
Council of the District of Columbia
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington DC 20004

Dear Councilmember Charles Allen,

The undersigned 9 consumer and community advocacy groups urge your immediate action and support for Title II of the Consumer Disclosure Act of 2017 (B22-0020). The bill, which has been pending before the Judiciary and Public Safety Committee since January 2017, will prevent District residents from unknowingly becoming trapped in a complex web of hidden automatic renewal contract clauses they did not knowingly consent to.

In order to participate in commerce, consumers must sign lengthy fine print contracts. These contracts often contain automatic renewal clauses which will cause the contract or membership to renew automatically if the consumer fails to notify a merchant of their desire to cancel prior to a date of the merchant’s choosing. When these clauses are clearly disclosed, they can help consumers avoid service interruptions. However, unscrupulous merchants slip automatic renewal contract clauses into the fine print of contracts without properly disclosing their presence in order to trap consumers into lengthy contracts. The proliferation of these hidden automatically renewing contract clauses has caused one in three Americans to be tricked into agreeing to an automatically renewing contract.[i]

In the coming years, the trend of unscrupulous businesses hiding automatic renewal clauses in the fine print of contracts is unlikely to change. Deloitte predicts that online media subscriptions, subscriptions, which almost always contain these clauses, will grow by at least 20% in 2018.[ii] Fortunately, the Consumer Disclosure Act of 2017 would prevent these unwelcome financial surprises by:

  • Requiring clear disclosure of any automatic renewal clause; and
  • Requiring that a notification be sent to enrollees 30-60 days prior to the deadline for canceling a multi-month automatically renewing a contract

The unplanned expense that these clauses inflict on their victims is of particular concern for the socio-economically disadvantaged members of our community who are less able to weather surprise bills. Action on this issue is long overdue. In the absence of legislative action, District residents will continue to receive surprise bills for products or services they no longer need or desire.

Through Title II of the Consumer Disclosure Act, the D.C. Council has a real opportunity to improve the lives of Washingtonians by granting District residents the tools they need to avoid becoming ensnared by unwanted automatically renewing contracts. We urge you to quickly take action and to provide District residents with this long overdue protection which is already enjoyed in several states across the country.

Sincerely,

Allied Progress
American Family Voices
Consumer Action
Consumer Federation of California
DC Fiscal Policy Institute
National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders
National Consumers League
Tzedek DC
Workplace Fairness

Cc: Members of the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety

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[i] Porche, Bradley. “Poll: Recurring charges are easy to start, hard to get out of,” Creditcards.com. August 21, 2017. Online: https://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/autopay-poll.php

[ii] Deloitte. “Technology, Media and Telecommunications Predictions,” Pg. 41. 2017. Online: https://www2.deloitte.com/global/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/gx-tmt-predictions-press-release.html

National Consumers League applauds the Department of Justice for bringing phone scam perpetrators to justice – National Consumers League

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July 24, 2018

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC–The National Consumers League (NCL), America’s pioneering consumer and worker advocacy organization, today commended the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for its crackdown on impersonation scams targeting vulnerable Americans. Last week, following their arrest in 2017, 24 perpetrators of a phone scam in which fraudsters extorted money from victims by impersonating IRS agents, or employees of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services were sentenced to up to 20 years in prison. The following statement is attributable to James Perry, Customer Services Coordinator and John Breyault, Vice President, Public Policy, Telecommunications, and Fraud, both of the National Consumers League:

“Imposter scams consistently rank amongst the most prevalent scams reported to NCL’s Fraud.org campaign. Last year alone, Americans lost a whopping $327 million to scammers who were impersonating individuals or government agencies. With the DOJ’s announcement that they have ended a massive operation that extorted hundreds of millions of dollars from vulnerable consumers, Americans can feel a little bit safer from a threatening phone call from a scammer. While we applaud the DOJ for this hard-won victory, we must all continue working hard to both educate consumers about this scam and redouble our efforts to put other perpetrators of this scam behind bars.”

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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 https://nclnet.org.