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Consumers Union, Policy & Action from Consumer Reports

Take action in your state, by clicking on the map below. For national actions, please click on your topic of interest: Health, Money, Food, Media, Other.
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          National Actions:  
             Health:
Support consumers, not insurance companies
New rules in the health care law are supposed to ensure that at least 80% of our insurance premium actually pays for medical care or else we get a rebate. But the insurance industry is fighting tooth and nail to get around that rule.
Premiums should pay for health care!
New rules in the health care law are supposed to ensure that at least 80% of our insurance premium actually pays for medical care or else we get a rebate. But the insurance industry is fighting tooth and nail to get around that rule.

Tell Congress: Fix the Flaw!
The medical-device safety bill is coming up for a major vote, yet it still includes a gaping safety loophole that industry lobbyists just love.
Your body shouldn't be industry's test subject!
Tell your Representative that safety testing medical implants first, and tracking them in case they need to be removed later, just makes sense.
Change this medical device bill for the better!
You have a lot of power right now because your Senator sits on the committee that is shaping the final medical device safety bill.
Common-sense safety for medical devices!
We shouldn't be used as guinea pigs when it comes to something as serious as a medical implant. Yet everyday, Americans are finding out that the medical device they are using to improve their health may actually end up hurting them or worse.
Don't let the drug companies do all the talking!
Urges members of the E&C committee to consider consumer safety issues in PDUFA V.
Is your hospital on the checklist?
Ask state legislators to urge hospitals in their district to join the Pronovost checklist campaign to end blood stream infections in the ICU.

             Money:
Now's not the time to raise student loan rates!
Americans now owe $1 trillion in loans for their college educations -- more than what we all owe on credit cards. Students and their families are taking out loans in record numbers because the cost of college has skyrocketed...
Know Your Credit Score!
Consumers fought hard for the right to a free copy of our credit reports, and we won that battle nearly a decade ago by bombarding Congress with hundreds of thousands of messages.
Tell Wells Fargo to just give the money back!
Wells Fargo manipulated the order of its customers' deposits and debits to maximize overdraft fees. A court ordered the bank to pay millions back to its customers. Wells hopes to tie this up in appeals for years. Tell the CEO to give up the appeals.
No charging until they change their ways!
Tell the credit card banks' top brass exactly what you think of the most recent round of rate increases, fees and new charges. Treating their best customers this way is hardly a sustainable business model in a fragile economy. Tell them what you think!

             Food:
Now isn't the time to weaken food safety!
As Germany struggles with its deadly food outbreak, a plan being voted on this week in Congress could dramatically set back food safety efforts in the United States.
Don't you want to know if that crib hurt a child?
Remember those millions of toy recalls? Lead paint, dangerous magnets and more. To make sure you can tell if products will be safe, Congress authorized a new database to report and read about safety problems. Corporations are trying to get rid of it!
Stop the GE Salmon!
FDA is about to approve its first genetically altered food animal--GE salmon. Bipartisan bills to stop the approval and require labeling have been filed! Tell your lawmakers to support these bills!
This law needs a makeover!
Each day we use an average of 10 personal care products shampoos, lotions, cosmetics exposing us to more than 126 unique chemicals.

             Media & Telecommunications:
Stop unwanted Internet tracking of children!
Today Americans across the nation are writing and calling their members of Congress with a simple request: Stop Internet companies from secretly tracking children online!
Stop SOPA/PIPA!
No one should get to unilaterally close down the websites you rely on because they may, or may not, contain pirated content or links to pirated consumer goods. Legislation currently under consideration is draconian. Help us get to a better solution!
Don't block FCC's net neutrality rules!
Tell the Senate NOT to overturn the FCC's net neutrality rules. Keep the internet open and accessible to everyone!
What's that charge, and how do I get rid of it?
Ever gotten a charge on your cell phone bill for something you didn't buy? Unlike a credit card company, cell phone companies do not have to pull that charge off your bill or cap your damages for fraud to $50. Let's change that! Act now!
Get control of your private information!
A bill has just been introduced to give you real control over your personal information while online or on your phone! Ask your lawmakers to cosponsor it!
Stop the bill shock!
If you've ever gotten a huge cell phone bill, and spent hours on the phone with customer service, then you will love this simple fix. Cell phone companies should notify you by text or call when you reach your voice, text or data limits!
Free your Phone!
If you own a cell phone or wireless device, you're being held hostage by the giant telecom companies.

             Other:
The stakes are high - use your voice!
The decisions of the deficit-reduction committee and Congress could impact every area of consumers' lives. From our retirement security to our health care as we age; from the safety of the products we buy to the food we serve our families.
Take control of your public reports!
These days, anyone with a credit card can purchase a lot of information about you, no questions asked. That information may be inaccurate. Or maybe you just want some privacy. Get control over your public record! Act now!
Your priorities, not the special interests'
As the Senate hammers out a budget, special interests are grabbing for policy changes in the guise of savings. Manufacturers want to stop the new CPSC safety database. Insurance companies want more of your premium for themselves. Take action now!
Tell Congress your priorities!
Tightening spending and cutting waste is important to get our deficit under control.
Millions of Recalls Are No Cause for Celebration
After the recall of more than 20 million cars this year, improvements in auto safety are overdue. A bill to give you more information about defects and hold companies accountable needs your help to pass before the end of this lame duck session!

Better gas mileage in the New Year!
As you watched holiday car ads, did you think..."Really? 23 mpg? You can't do better than that?" Of course they can. But automakers still churn out mostly inefficient cars. Support mileage that get us all further down the road for less.
Why would we want gas guzzlers?
It only takes some extra effort and about $800 for new Ohio homes to meet national energy efficiency standards. And this effort pays big dividends in the long run by lowering homeowners' utility bills by hundreds of dollars each year.
Don't kill easy energy-savings!
If each of us saves just a little bit of energy, it can really add up. By designing our appliances so they save even more electricity and water, the impact can be staggering some $43 billion in energy savings over the next 20 years!
House: Clean Air Act/Fuel efficiency
The House majority is pushing a bill that would block the Environmental Protection Agency from setting fuel efficiency standards that could save us billions at the pump and reduce our dependence on unstable, foreign oil.
We can do better!
Three months of oil gushing into our Gulf, and still no comprehensive energy plan. And now some Senators want to leave Washington without taking up a bill!
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Success Stories:
Kim and EricKim Witczak and Eric Swan have met with Governor Pawlenty and Rep. Jim Ramstad of Minnesota, who became a joint co-sponsor of drug safety legislation in the House. As our online activists put in the call for drug safety legislation in Minnesota, Kim and Eric will be there to reinforce the message with their personal testimony and dedication.

Dick Lambert
Dick Lambert of Roseville, MN contacted the Financial Privacy Now (FPN) campaign to further educate and encourage members in his community to become aware of issues outside Roseville. Aside from contacting a local AARP and legislators, Dick posted information on the Minnesota security freeze bill on the Roseville Citizens League webpage to get out the word and generate more support on the bill. His web and political savviness helped to invigorate what started off as a bill with limited protections to one of the best security freeze laws in the nation!