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News Release | U.S. PIRG | Public Health, Antibiotics

Antibiotic-Resistant Salmonella outbreak comes from unknown source

On Wednesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced an outbreak of Salmonella from an unknown source, which has so far infected 92 people in 29 states. This strain, Salmonella Infantis, which can be fatal, is resistant to multiple antibiotic treatments. And antibiotic resistance, hastened by the routine overuse of antibiotics on industrial farms, makes treating dangerous foodborne disease outbreaks more difficult. 

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News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund | Antibiotics

Chain Reaction report urges burger restaurants to beef up policies to eliminate routine use of antibiotics

Two growing burger chains, Shake Shack and BurgerFi, stand out from the herd when it comes to serving beef raised without the routine use of antibiotics in the burger industry. They were the only restaurants to earn an “A” on the fourth annual Chain Reaction scorecard released today by six major consumer and environmental organizations. The vast majority of hamburger chains — 22 of the top 25, including giants such as McDonald’s — got an “F” grade because they lack established policies restricting antibiotic use in their beef supply chains.

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Blog Post | Consumer Protection

Update to How You Can Change Your Experian Credit Freeze PIN | Mike Litt

Our consumer campaign director provides an update to how you can change your Experian credit freeze PIN after a security flaw was discovered two weeks ago.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG | Consumer Protection

Hurricane Michael coverage: Data, resources and interview opportunities

With Hurricane Michael expected to make landfall Wednesday in western Florida as a major, Category 3 hurricane, then continue through the Southeast, The Public Interest Network (which includes U.S. PIRG, Environment America, Environment Florida, Environment Georgia, Environment North Carolina and Environment Virginia, among other organizations) is sharing information to help your readers and viewers contextualize the major environmental, health and consumer concerns posed by Michael.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG | Consumer Protection

You Should Change Your Experian Credit Freeze PIN

Our press release recommending consumers change their credit freeze PINs on their Experian credit reports after reports yesterday revealed a security flaw with Experian’s online PIN retrieval page.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG | Public Health, Consumer Protection

Consumer Group Faults Exemptions for Second Recall of Compounded Drug in 2018

After a second major recall of all sterile compounded drugs manufactured by an "outsourcing facility", U.S. PIRG calls on the Food and Drug Administration to close loopholes that exempt these operations from safe manufacturing requirements.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG

Hurricane Florence data, resources and interview opportunities

As Hurricane Florence bears down on the Southeastern U.S. coast, The Public Interest Network (which includes U.S. PIRG, Environment America, Environment Georgia, Environment North Carolina and Frontier Group, among other organizations) is sharing information that will help your readers and viewers contextualize what's going on with regard to major environmental and health concerns.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG | Public Health, Consumer Protection

Honey Smacks still on shelves 2 months after salmonella recall

Some stores are still stocking Honey Smacks more than two months after a massive recall due to Salmonella contamination that now has poisoned 130 individuals in 36 states, according to  the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).  The latest FDA update includes 30 more sick people from three previously unaffected states:  Delaware, Maine and Minnesota.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund | Consumer Protection

New Report: How to Protect Consumers 1 Year After Equifax Breach

One year after announcing the worst data breach in history, Equifax has yet to pay a price or provide consumers with the information and tools they need to adequately protect themselves. A new report by U.S. PIRG Education Fund provides a recap of actions against Equifax over the last year, new materials to help consumers understand how to best protect themselves, and a case for why both oversight and financial consequences are needed to prevent future large-scale breaches.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG

New study links untested strain of E. coli in chicken to human illness, USDA Needs to Act

A new report from the George Washington University Milken Institute of Public Health shows that a strain of E. coli in poultry that is rarely tested for could be linked to people contracting urinary tract infections. This gap requires a reevaluation of what strains require investigation to catch dangerous pathogens, according to experts and advocacy group U.S. Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PIRG).

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Report | US PIRG Education Fund | Consumer Protection

Mortgages and Mortgage Complaints

Our sixth report analyzing complaints in the CFPB's Public Consumer Complaint Database evaluates mortgage complaints, the number one source of complaints to the CFPB, totaling 38% of nearly 500,000 complaints posted since 2011.

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Report | US PIRG Education Fund | Transportation

Who Pays For Roads

Many Americans believe that drivers pay the full cost of the roads they use through gas taxes and other user fees. That has never been true, and it is less true now than at any other point in modern times. Today, general taxes paid by all tax- payers cover nearly as much of the cost of building and maintaining highways as the gas tax and other fees paid by drivers.

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Report | US PIRG Education Fund & CDD

Targeting Hispanics for Leads in the Digital Big Data Era

This report examines digital targeting and marketing to Hispanics, especially younger Hispanics, due to their growing economic clout and early adoption of mobile smart phones, which enables precision targeting based on behavior, geo-location and language.

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Report | US PIRG Education Fund & CDD

Private For-Profit Colleges and Online Lead Generation:

This report explains how for-profit colleges recruit students, using companies called online lead generators.

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Report | US PIRG Education Fund & CDD

Online Lead Generation

This report explains the online lead generator industry. It is part of our joint project with the Center for Digital Democracy called "Data and Consumer Protection: Ensuring a Fair and Equitable Financial Marketplace."

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Blog Post | Consumer Protection

Lowering your APR might be easier than you think | Kathryn Lee

Many Americans are walking around with a balance on their credit card because of high interest rates, or annual percentage rate (APR) charges for unpaid balances. It's best to pay off your balance in full but if you don't or can't, a higher APR makes your debit grow faster. What most people don’t realize is this APR can be negotiated to a lower rate.

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Blog Post | Public Health

Flint Pediatrician Gave a Voice to the Voiceless in Flint, Michigan | Anna Low-Beer

Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha is the Flint pediatrician who led the charge in proving that Flint water was tainted by lead and was poisoning the community. Without her drive and dedication to the children of Flint, it is hard to say how long government officials might have left the public in the dark about the mounting crisis. In honor of Women’s History Month we’re recognizing Dr. Hanna-Attisha -- a doctor, mother, and activist -- who has relentlessly fought for the public interest. 

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Blog Post | Transportation

The future of driving

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Blog Post | Transportation

Owning Fewer Cars Isn’t Just For Millennials | Sean Doyle

New transportation options are making it easier for people to use transit more, own fewer cars, and even save money on transportation.

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Video Blog | Public Health, Food

Who's next to help save antibiotics?

Doctors, farmers, restaurant owners, and hundreds of thousands of people like you are all placing the same order: meat raised without routine antibiotics. Many fast food chains have stepped up to help stop the overuse of antibiotics. The question is, who will be next?

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Report | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Volkswagen Settlement State Scorecard

Every state, with the exception of Florida, has now published its plan to spend the money being received as part of the Volkswagen emissions violations settlement. This scorecard grades each state’s plan on how well it is designed to take full advantage of the opportunity to invest in transportation electrification.

News Release | U.S. PIRG

U.S. PIRG celebrates 10 years of the Credit CARD Act

U.S. PIRG celebrated the 10th anniversary of the passage of the groundbreaking Credit CARD (Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure) Act today by joining with the law’s chief sponsor Rep. Carolyn Maloney (NY) at a U.S. Capitol press conference.

News Release | US PIRG

Statement: State jury orders Bayer to pay more than $2 billion to couple in Roundup cancer case

A state jury in Oakland decided that the use of Roundup by a California couple for residential landscaping over a 30 year period was a “substantial factor” that led to them developing non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Report | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Blueprint For Tomorrow

Infrastructure is at the heart of America’s greatest challenges. The infrastructure investments made by generations past have contributed to improved health and welfare, and to the nation’s unparalleled economic prosperity. But the infrastructure decisions of the past have also cast a long shadow, leaving America to deal with the burden of lead water pipes that jeopardize our children’s health, fossil fuel pipelines that contribute to global warming, and transportation and solid waste infrastructure that no longer serve today’s needs.

News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Report: Roadmap for a stronger, more sustainable American infrastructure

Three years after candidates from both parties made infrastructure a key presidential campaign issue, it’s finally the long-awaited “infrastructure week.” Democratic congressional leaders and the White House announced two weeks ago that they would commit $2 trillion to the cause. But a new report from U.S. PIRG Education Fund, Environment America Research & Policy Center and Frontier Group cautions that before allocating that money, our elected officials need to determine which investments will alleviate the most dire problems America faces as a result of crumbling or outdated infrastructure -- climate change, pollution and threats to public safety.

  • How safe is our food?
    Nationwide recalls ranging from romaine lettuce to millions of pounds of beef to Ritz and Goldfish crackers underscore that there’s a growing public health crisis we need to address.
    Find out
  • Why are health experts alarmed?
    More than 93% of doctors are concerned about the overuse of antibiotics on factory farms, yet factory farms still use up to 70% of all antibiotics sold in the U.S.
    Learn Why
  • Reclaim our Democracy
    Our democracy is based on the principle of one person, one vote, but our research shows the increasing dominance of big money in our elections.
    Get the facts
  • PROTECT YOURSELF
    We've created consumer tips to help protect you from unfair bank fees, identity theft, loan rip-offs and more.
    Get The Tips

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