By Walter Dartland Consumer Federation of the Southeast
“We are aware of organized criminal groups which stage phony car accidents. Many of the staged automobile accidents involve highly structured groups…”

With the rampant auto insurance fraud we see today in Florida, it would be easy to believe that quote came from the Governor or Chief Financial Officer. Actually, it came from then-FBI Director Louis Freeh, speaking back in 1995. Here we are 17 years later, still grappling with the same problem of criminals looking to rob our personal injury protection insurance (PIP) system. These fraudsters are now ripping off the system to the tune of $1 billion per year, and we – the law-abiding citizens – pay the price for their misdeeds. Read more

Tallahassee, FL – As Florida lawmakers consider budget proposals that raid the Lawton Chiles Endowment and propose deep cuts to health care services – threatening some of the Sunshine State’s most vulnerable citizens – the Consumer Federation of the Southeast today urged lawmakers to impose an equity fee on cigarettes made by manufacturers who do not participate in the state’s historic tobacco settlement. Depending on federal matching dollars, the fee could generate anywhere from $50 million to $200 million to help protect vital services for at-risk Floridians. Read more

Consumer Federation of the Southeast Warns Public Employees

Against Investing in Unvetted Indexed Annuities

~Educators among the top targets of those ensnared by unscrupulous brokers

selling unvetted indexed annuity plans~

2011 — In an era in which budgets are being cut drastically and public employees are being asked to carry a larger burden for their own retirement and healthcare costs, the Consumer Federation of the Southeast today issued a warning to educators to “beware” of purchasing unvetted investment plans. Read more

A FDA warning about high doses of the cholesterol-lowering drug Simvastatin was not aggressively advertised to patients or physicians after they were pushed to switch from Lipitor to the less-expensive drug by pharmacy-benefit plans, according to physicians familiar with the drug.

Reposted from NPR: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/06/09/137078525/critic-faults-fda-for-tardy-warning-on-simvastatin-risk?ps=sh_sthdl

Critic Faults FDA for Tardy Warning on Simvastatin Risk

By Richard Knox

Thu., June 9, 2011 12:30pm (EDT) 

The fact that 80 daily milligrams of simvastatin (brand name Zocor) can cause serious muscle damage has been known for years. So why did it take the Food and Drug Administration so long to tell doctors and patients they should avoid that dose?

The answer reveals a lot about the FDA’s reluctance to restrict use of a popular drug much less move to take it off the market even when there are safer alternatives.

The FDA on Wednesday said use of the 80 milligram dose of simvastatin should “be sharply curtailed because of the risk of muscle injury.” The agency says doctors should avoid starting patients on that dose, too, though patients who’ve been on it for a year or more without problems can continue.

Cardiologist Steven Nissen of the Cleveland Clinic, one of the FDA’s most persistent gadflies, says the label change is too little and far too late. Read more

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. –Attorney General Pam Bondi today joined Senate Majority Leader Andy Gardiner (R-Orlando) and Representative Eric Eisnaugle (R-Orlando) to unveil a legislative initiative that will protect consumers from timeshare resale fraud, the number one complaint that the Attorney General’s Office has received for the past two years.  The bill strengthens existing laws by addressing unfair and deceptive marketing and advertising practices by timeshare resale companies. From January 2011 to date, the Attorney General’s Office has received nearly 6,863 complaints.  In 2010, the Attorney General’s Office received more than 12,000 complaints about timeshare resale fraud—more than the next four highest complaint categories combined.
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By Bob LaMendola, Sun Sentinel

August 12, 2011

Health insurers are increasingly charging patients sharply higher amounts for the most expensive drugs, often causing sticker shock for the sick people who need them.

Health plans that have hiked co-payments say affected patients must pay hundreds of dollars more per month for drugs that can cost thousands, in order to prevent big jumps in premiums for everyone else.

But patients and their advocates say the practice discriminates against people who are unlucky enough to have a disease that is expensive to treat, and forces some to stop taking life-saving medicine. Three reports out this month say the practice can devastate patients financially.

Florida has been hit hard, with its large population of seniors and a high proportion of younger patients with HIV, hepatitis, kidney disease and other chronic conditions that are treated with expensive medicines. One estimate says 12 percent of Florida prescriptions — and growing — are affected by the cost hikes.

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - The Consumer Federation of the Southeast (CFSE) today praised efforts within the pharmaceutical industry to crack down on widespread prescription drug abuse. Following the implementation of Florida’s new laws to crack down on pill mills, CFSE Executive DirectorWalter Dartland also recognized Florida Governor Rick Scott, Attorney General Pam Bondi and state lawmakers as national leaders in the fight against the nationwide epidemic of prescription drug abuse. A new Florida law intends to shut down pill mills by increasing penalties for overprescribing controlled substances and provides $3 million to support the continued efforts of state and local law enforcement.

“The widespread abuse of prescription drugs is a serious problem facing communities throughout the southeastern United States,” said Dartland. “Health providers can be important partners in helping reduce the spread of abuse while ensuring the legitimate health needs of consumers and patients are met.

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