Consumer News & Alerts -- October 18, 2004

SPITZER SINKS TEETH INTO INSURERS

New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, the pit bull of law enforcement, has clamped down on Marsh & McLennan, the nation's leading insurance brokerage. Two of the firm's top executives have pleaded guilty to criminal charges and are likely to put Spitzer on the scent of many more juicy morsels. "Trust me, this is day one," said Spitzer. Wall Street swooned at the news; insurance company stocks dropped 6% or more.

In a nutshell, Spitzer charges insurance brokers are rigging bids and collecting huge fees from major insurance companies for throwing business their way, instead of looking out for their clients' best interests, which is what they're being paid to do.

THE VIOXX FLU


Maybe it was all those Presidential debates, or maybe too much time on the cell phone. Whatever the cause, American consumers suddenly have a wide assortment of health-related aches and pains to deal with.

Pfizer "Discovers" Bextra Risks Last week, Pfizer said its COX-2 inhibitors Bextra and Celebrex didn't carry the same risks as Vioxx. But now, Pfizer warns that Bextra poses risks of heart attack and stroke in patients who have had coronary bypass surgery. The risk was demonstrated in a study the company completed last spring and confirmed similar risks found a year earlier. Pfizer continues to insist its drugs differ chemically from Vioxx and don't pose the same risks ... well, not exactly the same, anyway.

Vioxx Refunds After a controlled study confirmed earlier suspicions that Vioxx could cause heart attacks and strokes in those who used it for an extended period, Merck withdrew the popular pain reliever voluntarily. "Merck did the right thing," said Acting FDA Commissioner Dr. Lester M. Crawford. Maybe so. But the giant drug company also left millions of consumers trying to figure out what to do with their remaining supply.

The company says it will pay refunds to anyone who can produce unused pills and the purchase receipts but the attorneys general from five states last week warned Merck that's not good enough. They informed Merck that another drug company was being investigated for the manner in which it conducted a recall, making it clear Merck could face big legal problems if it doesn't adopt a more liberal refund policy.

PROZAC GETS BLACK BOX WARNING

Like COX-2 inhibitors, certain types of antidepressants have for quite some time raised serious concerns among researchers. Now the Food and Drug Administration has ordered that Prozac and similar drugs display the dread "black box," a prominent notice of potentially deadly side effects. The concern is that the so-called SSRIs -- it stands for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors -- can cause suicidal thoughts and behavior in children and adolescents.

Hang Up and Drive! There's no question cell phones are bad for your driving but now a Swedish study indicates they may be bad for what's inside your skull as well. Researchers found that people who have used cell phones for at least 10 years have an increased risk of developing a rare brain tumor. Note: The variable in those studied was not how much they talked but how long they had been using a cell phone. Significant differences became apparent at the ten-year mark.

A Privileged Class? It's been difficult to get any information about medical malpractice because everyone's trying to spin it their way, spouting theories and generalities. The only way to consider the issue intelligently is to look at actual cases, disregarding the self-interested smokescreens of the combatants.

To facilitate this, we have begun digging out and reporting on routine malpractice cases around the country. Check out our Malpractice News section where you can read about Robin Christopher, Elsa Lopez, Michael Osgood and others whose families say their deaths were caused by substandard medical care. To borrow a phrase -- we'll report, you decide. (A shortcut to this section: http://www.malpracticenews.org).

Full Disclosure Shocking though it is, the electron-stained wretches who run this newsletter and Web site are not lawyers. Our site is not owned or controlled by a law firm. We don't know why so many of those who send us epistles wrapped about virtual bricks seem to be under this mistaken impression. We could not care less whether malpractice lawyers make a lot of money or none at all. The only dog we have in this fight is enabling enlightened consumer decisions.

The Vultures Come Out To Play Amid the squabbling over the loss of half the U.S. flu vaccine supply comes the harsh reminder that profiteering inevitably follows (and, for that matter, often precedes) any widespread misfortune. Officials in Florida and Kansas have charged a Florida company with charging wildly inflated prices for flu vaccine destined for a nursing home in Kansas City. Other buzzard sightings will no doubt follow.

HIGH-VOLTAGE INTERNET

Basically, anything that vibrates can transmit data -- and that includes the power lines that bring electricity into your home. It's not technically difficult to use those lines to transmit telephone calls, cable television and high-speed data. And now that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has cleared the way for power companies to zap more than juice through their lines, there may soon be some interesting new competitors offering broadband service, especially in rural areas that have so far been shunned by cable and telephone-based providers.

WEB OUTLAWS ENDANGER TEENS

We've never understood why parents get so exercised about the possibility their kids might surf across something sexual or otherwise taboo on the Internet but show relatively little concern about things their kids can order over the Web that they can't buy in person. Like cigarettes. It is illegal to sell or provide cigarettes to minors yet hundreds of Web sites do just that. An advocacy group argues that it's time for local and state officials to start enforcing the law by prosecuting sites that sell tobacco to kids and the parcel services that deliver them. Agree? You can sign an online petition at e-pidemic.org/petition/.

GOOGLE SEARCHES NEW REAL ESTATE

We're bowled over by the Googleplex's latest -- Google Desktop, which will search your hard drive about 18 googilion times faster than the dreary search function built into Windows software. We now find -- in a split second -- misplaced documents and emails that we had long since given up on.

This reminds us that in all the blather that's written about Google, we have yet to find an analyst who recognizes what we consider Google's real genius: their stuff smokes. Google's Web searches are faster than a z3 with an after-market chip, as is Gmail, which we've been testing for months. In fact, Gmail is so much faster than any other Web-based e-mail service that it's not even in the same product category. We find it ludicrous that everyone harps about the ads while disregarding Gmail's speed and superior sorting capability.

Shocking Disclosure Your humble editor's threadbare portfolio includes a few shares of Google stock.

Starbucks Blends Brews and Blues Soon you'll be able to order a grande latte with a pinch (oops, better make that a blend) of Alanis Morisette and Madonna. Starbucks is introducing CD-burning kiosks where you can choose any seven songs from a library of 200,000 for $8.99. We have to admit this is a pretty swift idea, considering how long it takes to get a cup of coffee these days.

Amazon Muscles Netflix Aside They don't call it Amazon.com for nothing. Rumors that the online merchandising goliath plans to enter the monthly DVD rental business sent Netflix into a tailspin. It slashed its monthly subscription price from $21.99 a month to $17.99 while its stocked tanked and analysts began to administer last rites. Blockbuster also took to its bed, cutting its price from $19.99 to $17.99. Wal-Mart, as far as anyone could tell, had not yet noticed.

Something's Brewing Before it kicks sand in too many faces, Amazon should take note of Starbucks. Amazon's reliance on such quaint delivery channels as snail mail and UPS is a distinct disadvantage compared to Starbucks' "Sip, Burn & Go" model. There's no reason Starbucks can't print books and burn DVDs on demand. No muss, no fuss and would you like a bagel or a muffin with that?

SAD SACK NEWS ...

Hydro-Gel Promoters Shed Excess Dollars A Canadian-based fulfillment company doing business as Beauty Visions Worldwide and SlimShop has agreed to refund $72,000 to consumers to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it made false and unsubstantiated weight-loss claims for two purported weight-loss patches - "Hydro-Gel Slim Patch" and "Slenderstrip."

Mortgage Spammer DC Enterprises sent out loads of spam pitching low-interest mortgages and got itself sued by the state of Massachusetts. The company will pay a $25,000 fine and has promised never to do it again.

RECALLS

• IKEA Fargglad Children’s Chair The plastic feet can detach, posing a choking hazard to small children.


• Care Bears Lunch Kits The pull-up drinking spout can detach from the bottle, posing a choking hazard to young children.


• Little Giant Cooler Pumps The motor caps on the "swamp cooler" pumps are not made with flame-retardant material and an internal electrical failure can ignite the cap, posing a fire hazard.



• Chrysler Minivans An electrical problem could cause the driver's side air bag to fail.


• Polar and Trailblazer Work Boots The protective toe cap on the boots may not provide sufficient impact and compression protection.

A PHONY MEMORIAL TO BAD TASTE

The "Freedom Tower Silver Dollar" has been shamelessly hawked on infomercials and the Internet as a supposed memorial to those killed at the World Trade Center. This tasteless display of mawkishness is gruesome enough but in fact, says New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, the coins contain almost no silver and are not legal tender, which would mean they're not silver dollars, now wouldn't it? And as for the loathesome claim the coins are "minted from pure silver recovered from Ground Zero," well ... enough said.