Current Events in November 2013

Gourmet Express is recalling 32-oz packages of Fusia Chicken Lo Mein, and 21-oz packages of Bremer 3 Cheese Chicken and Bremer Garlic Shrimp.

The products may contain eggs, an undeclared allergen not listed on the label. No illnesses have been reported to date.

The recalled products were distributed to Aldi distribution centers in the Mt. Joliet, Tenn., Jefferson, Ga., Batavia, Ill., Valparaiso, Ind., and Webberville, Mich., areas. The products also may have been shipped to Aldi retail stores.

The Fusia Chicken Lo Mein comes in a 32-oz multi-colored plastic package, Bremer 3 Cheese Chicken and Bremer Garlic Shrimp come in 21-oz multi-colored packages. All three are marked BEST BY APR 9 2015 stamped on the top tear strip.

Consumers with questions may contact the company at (877) 599-9330 M-F 8:00 am- 5:00 pm CST or by email at jzielke@gourmetdining.net.

Hyundai is recalling 43,500 model year 2009-2012 Genesis vehicles manufactured April 30, 2008, through March 28, 2012.

The vehicles may contain brake fluid which does not protect against corrosion of the Hydraulic Electronic Control Unit (HECU). If the module corrodes, reduced brake effectiveness may result, increasing the risk of a crash.

Hyundai will notify owners and instruct them to bring their vehicle to a dealer for service, where the HECU module will be inspected for proper operation, and replaced if necessary. Hyundai also will replace the factory brake fluid in those vehicles that have not previously had the factory brake fluid replaced. These repairs will be done free of charge. The recall is expected to begin by the end of December 2013.

Owners may contact Hyundai at 1-800-633-5151 or by email at consumeraffairs@hmausa.com. Hyundai's recall number is 114.

Garden-Fresh Foods is expanding its earlier recall on various ready-to-eat salads, slaw, and dip products sold under various brands and code dates.

The products may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. There have been no illness or complaints related to this recall.

The products included in the expanded recall were produced between the dates of September 5, 2013, through October 16, 2013.

The products listed below were sold in various size containers (6-oz to 5-lb packages) in retail stores and food services in Wisconsin Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois Ohio, Indiana, Texas, Florida. Massachusetts, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Arizona and California:

Consumers who have purchased any of the suspect products are urged to return it to the place of purchase for a full refund. Currently there has been no illness or complaints related to this recall.

Consumers with questions may contact the company at 1-800-645-3367 Monday through Friday between the hours 8:00AM- 4:30 PM

If you live in rural America you may have found your Internet options are quite limited. Some areas don't even offer DSL because the telecommunications provider servicing the region has never updated its switching stations.

Until an expensive fiber optic network is built these regions are dependent on the new generation of Internet services delivered by satellite. Until recently satellite Internet was a frustrating mess. The satellites were too small to handle all the subscriptions and the ground receivers too slow.

But the new generation of these services – known as Gen 4 – have provided much better results. Now, there are three companies competing in this space – Exede, HughesNet (an Authorized Partner) and DishNet. All three companies offer various prices, based on speed and usage.

None offers a truly unlimited plan, as you would get with cable Internet, FIOS or even DSL. Instead, you get a monthly allotment of data for high-speed Internet usage. When you exceed your allowance your speed slows considerably. To get the best results you have to choose the right option for your needs.

Plans from Exede

Exede offers four plans. The Classic 10 plan costs $49.99 a month and gives you 10 GB of data, at speeds of up to 12 mps down and 3 mps up. If you have two or three computers connected to the Internet and watch YouTube videos or listen to streaming music on a daily basis, you will probably exceed the allowance most months with this plan.

The Classic 15 is much the same, except that it offers 15GB of data. It costs $79.99 per month and while you may not exceed your limit most months, you won't be downloading movies every other night.

The Classic 25 offers 25 GB of data each month, giving users more flexibility when it comes to watching movies and video. But it also carries a higher price tag – $129.99.

Exede also offers what it calls the Evolution Plan, billing it as unlimited. However, it is only unlimited as far as viewing web pages and using email is concerned. For all other uses – downloading or streaming movies, for example – you are limited to 5 GB of data.

For all plans, Exede turns off the meter between midnight and 5 a.m., allowing for unlimited data usage for the night owls among its customers.

HughesNet offers four plans

HughesNet (an Authorized Partner) speeds and capacity rise with the price of its four plans. The base Connect plan provides up to 5 mps down and 1 mps up and costs $39.99 for 10 GB of data. The company recommends it for customers connecting only one computer.

The Power plan costs $49.99 and provides up to 10 mps down and 1 mps up, with a monthly allotment of 20 GB of data, making it suitable for handling larger files or for networks with two or three computers.

The Power Pro plan offers speeds up to 10 mps up and 2 mps down and a total of 30 GB of data, at a cost of $79.99. Again, it might provide plenty of capacity for a small business network.

The largest plan, the Power MAX, provides up to 15 mps down and 2 mps up. It offers 40 GB of data each month, the largest allotment of any satellite Internet plan, and costs $129.99.

DishNet's offerings

DishNet has three levels of high speed Internet service. The base package offers a 5 mps download speed and 10 GB of data, at a price of $39.99. It's designed for a single user.

The middle package ups the speed to 10 mps down and provides 20 GB of data at a cost of $49.99 a month. The top shelf package offers 10 mps down and provides 30 GB of data usage each month for $69.99.

While satellite Internet is far from perfect, one of the plans from these three providers may give you an adequate level of service – much more than rural Americans have been offered in the past.

Drive through almost any neighborhood in America and you may see a cardboard sign, tacked to a utility pole, promising to buy your home fast, for cash. For many financially-strapped homeowners, it sounds tempting.

It's especially tempting if the home needs some repairs and updating. The seller might not have the time or money to get the house in shape to sell at its market price. Wouldn't it be better to take less and get it over with quickly?

Maybe, but chances are the company that put up the sign, offering to buy your home sight-unseen, expects to offer considerably less than the seller expects to receive.

Scott Simpson operates a “quick sale” real estate company in the UK called Flying Homes. As an experiment, he says he had someone call other quick sale companies, pretending to be a seller interested in unloading their home. They described it as being in poor condition, needing major renovations, and located in one of the UK's worst real estate markets.

Always the same answer

When asked if the company still wanted to buy the house, Simpson said the answer was always “you bet!” But why? Because, says Simpson, the buyer has no intention of offering anything close to the home's real value.

“The UK 'quick house sale' market tends to try and secure deals at 70% to 80% below the market value,” Simpson said. “I would suspect that this is similar for the U.S. market too.”

If an owner believes their house is undesirable and therefore worth very little, Simpson says it provides an opening for many unscrupulous property buyers. They're hoping the prospective seller has no idea of their property's value and will jump and the chance to unload it. In attempting to close the deal the buyer usually makes an offer and demands an immediate answer, warning it is “now or never.” That's almost always a sign of a bad deal.

Simpson says the market in the UK is more problematic and prone to delays than in the U.S.

“A buyer can pull out at any time without financial penalty prior to exchange of contracts,” he said.

Guaranteed profit

Quick house sale companies will often offer to buy every house because they know that they can resell it, even using a real estate agent, and make a quick cash profit. No matter the condition or location of the property, it has some market value and most quick sale companies make sure they buy it well below that level.

While the UK and U.S. real estate markets have many differences, Simpson says there are also similarities. He advises would-be sellers to slow down.

“If the customer has no desperate need to sell or can wait up to six months, then companies like ours could help to broker the property and find a buyer prepared to pay more or less the market rate,” Simpson said. “In these instances the customer can receive 90% to 95% of market value.”

What to do

First, the seller must know what the property is worth. While there are many variables involved in arriving at that number, start with a a real estate website like Zillow.com, which provides a “Zestimate” for nearly every residential property in America, based on comp sales and tax rates. These estimates don't take into consideration the condition of the property but can provide a starting point at arriving at a value.

Get estimates for making repairs and upgrades and deduct this cost from the value of the property. If you can document these estimates, provide it as part of the sales literature used to market the house.

Finally, invest a little sweat equity in making the property more appealing. Outside, trim vegetation, gather up yard debris and take other simple steps to enhance curb appeal.

Inside, thoroughly clear floors and woodwork and consider a fresh coat of paint where needed. You can still price your property to sell quickly without giving it away.

The Google Chromebook has been making friends and influencing people but a recent problem has rendered many of the machines temporarily unusable, sending their owners into orbit.

"I'm going to miss this Pixel after I send it back," fumed Business Insider columnist Julie Bort yesterday. Her $1,500 Chrombook Pixel had displayed the same weird sign-on problem as mine and an unknown number of others have done over the past few weeks.

The issue, which seems to be a so-far unidentified bug, occurs when a Chromebook user tries to sign on in an area where there is no wi-fi. Normally, the machines -- which operate totally in the cloud -- use your Google ID to sign on. No wi-fi, no Google sign-on.

When things are working properly, you are still able to log onto the machine and work with any files you may have saved locally. But users who have encountered this bug have been completely out of luck.

4G backup is no help

Pixel owners -- who paid $1,500 for their machines, about the same as a MacBook Pro -- also have Verizon 4G built into the laptops, for use when there is no wi-fi network.

But guess what. In my case, I tried to boot up while on a Southwest Airlines flight last week. For whatever reason, the wi-fi wasn't working on that flight. No problem, I thought. When we get to Chicago, where I had a two-hour connection layover, I expected to log in there and get caught up.

Instead, once at Midway, I was unable to get onto the machine at all, using either wi-fi or Verizon. Two hours of frustration. I turned on wi-fi sharing on my Verizon droid but the Pixel stubbornly refused to see it. Since I couldn't log on, I couldn't choose a new network. Catch-22.

Finally, we clambered on board the next leg of the flight and I watched, seething, as other passengers logged in and went to work, while I persued the useless products advertised in a dog-eared copy of Sky Mall.

It wasn't until I got to my destination and walked into the office where there was a wi-fi signal that my Chromebook had memorized on an earlier trip that I was once again in touch with the world. (You wondered why your copy of the Daily Consumer was late last week? Now you know.)

Other owners grouse

After catching up on my work, I went online and found others complaining of the same problem on the Chromebook online forum, which is Google's notion of customer service.

"It is quite frustrating. I write and often have deadlines to meet and time-sensitive data to share. I recently found myself stuck at a truck stop and was thus forced to pay to get online in order to access my chromebook," said a user called MBP.

You think you can call or email Chromebook tech support? Hah. Just try it. Instead you have to go into the Chromebook Central forum and wade through endless discussions ranging from profound to moronic. There are moderators of some sort and one claimed that the issue had been fixed:

"The bug that I have been following has been marked Fixed as of Oct 14:  Issue # 295245,  Offline signin sometimes doesn't work (user OAuth token state is reported as invalid)," said Lynn McCarthy on Oct. 29, the same day my problem occurred, which indicated to me that indeed it had not been fixed. 

Unable to get any help from other users who were as frustrated as I was, I called Verizon Wireless, where a very helpful fellow said he had heard similar complaints from other Pixel users. He suggested -- but stressed that he did not know for certain since he was not a Google rep -- that it's best to sign in as "guest" and disable either wi-fi or 4G before proceeding. He suggested always keeping one or the other disabled. 

Whether this is dead-on accurate or not, it has worked so far. I now routinely keep 4G turned off unless I know I will need it. I then turn off wi-fi. So far the problem has not recurred but who knows when it will pop up again?

Two things are more than a little annoying about this solution --

1. One big reason I got the Pixel was that I liked the idea of having a 4G alternative that would kick in automatically when there was no wi-fi. I quickly burned through the "free" amount of bandwidth provided with the Pixel purchase and now shell out $20 a month to Verizon for access.

2. Anyone who charges $1,500 for a laptop should at least answer emails, if not provide telephone support. Google seems to think it is above such mundane concerns as it floats above us in the cloud but if it wants to make a splash in the hardware business with Google Glass, Motorola Smartphones and its various tablets, laptops and so forth, it is going to eventually have to recognize that it owes its consumers a little more than an online forum populated by other irritated customers.

Does Google really think Verizon will routinely bail out Google's hardware customers?

Other issues

This fiasco is not the only Pixel eccentricity that has raised my blood pressure lately. If we assume that most people who spend $1,500 on a laptop are using it for work and not just to watch movies and do dumb things on Facebook, a few other things need to be attended to:

1. Images. My work involves capturing and editing images. This is easily done with Photoshop, GIMP and iPhoto but, of course, the Chromebook won't run any of these. Instead, there are a few anemic apps like SumoPaint and Pixr, which are totally inadequate for anything even remotely resembling professional use.

2. Multiple accounts. Anyone who has more than one Google account -- and who doesn't? -- will be endlessly frustrated with the Chromebook. On any other machine, you can be jhood in Chrome, jim.hood in Firefox and johndoe in Explorer or Opera. With the Chromebook, you're stuck with Chrome, which can involve endless rounds of logging in and out of various user accounts. Yeah sure, you can have multiple accounts open but not all Google applications support multiple accounts. 

3. Printing. The Chromebook will not talk directly to a printer. You must use something called Google CloudPrint, which works only with certain printers of very recent vintage. Yes, I know you can save your boarding pass as a PDF file, email or share it with someone whose machine is connected to a printer, etc., etc., but even the dumbest Windows machine will pretty quickly establish a relationship with nearly any printer you plug into it. I understand why the Chromebook doesn't do that (no drivers) but, quite honestly, it's not my problem -- it's Google's.

That's because the Chromebook Pixel and I are done. Kaput. I need a machine that will go with me on my travels and work when I need it to. For now, that means I'll be heading back to my Asus laptop running Linux Mint but will be making a stop at the nearest Apple store as soon as it's convenient.

Want my Pixel? Keep watching Craigslist. It'll be there shortly. 

Your middle-aged dog or cat starts limping. Assuming it's arthritis, your first impulse is to reach for the ibuprofen bottle. But not so fast. Pain relievers that may be safe for humans aren’t necessarily safe for pets, says Melanie McLean, D.V.M., a veterinarian at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

It may be that ibuprofen or another non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug -- commonly called an NSAID -- is just fine if given in the proper dosage and if you are careful to watch for side effects. But it's important to be careful.

“Scientists consider NSAIDs the cornerstone of osteoarthritis therapy in dogs,” says Melanie McLean, D.V.M., a veterinarian at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Some NSAIDS are also used to manage pain after surgery in both dogs and cats. No NSAID has been approved for long-term use in cats.

NSAIDs carry risks as well as benefits, however, and all dogs and cats should undergo a thorough physical examination by a veterinarian — including a discussion of the pet’s medical history — before beginning NSAID therapy. McLean notes that it’s also important that you talk to your veterinarian about possible side effects, including those that could signal danger.

Risks and side effects

NSAIDS are associated with gastrointestinal ulcers/perforations, kidney, and liver toxicity (damage done by exposure to medications or chemicals) and must be used cautiously in animals with pre-existing kidney or liver problems.

Because most liver-associated toxicities occur during the first three weeks, it’s especially important to closely monitor the results of blood tests during the early stages of long-term NSAID treatment in dogs. Also, before starting long-term treatment with NSAIDs in dogs, blood tests should be conducted to establish baseline data and then repeated on a regular basis. McLean recommends that you talk with your veterinarian about how often this blood work should be done.

Some of the most common side effects of NSAIDS in animals reported to FDA are:

• vomiting

• decreased or no appetite

• decreased activity level

• diarrhea

While your animal is taking NSAIDs, continuously monitor the pet for these side effects as well as looking for blood in the feces, tar-like stools, yellowing of the whites of the eyes, or yellowing of the gums. If you see these, call your veterinarian immediately, McLean says. Other reported side effects include stomach and intestinal ulcers, intestinal perforation (a hole in the wall of the intestine), kidney failure, liver failure and death.

Giving two NSAIDs at the same time, or giving an NSAID with a steroid, such as prednisone, can significantly increase the risk and severity of side effects, especially gastrointestinal toxicity.

Risks associated with NSAIDs are detailed on the package inserts and the client information sheets that accompany all FDA-approved veterinary oral NSAIDs.

OTC meds for people

McLean says that it’s not unusual for pet owners to want to give their animals NSAIDs or acetaminophen (Tylenol and other brands, which are not NSAIDs) straight from their own medicine cabinets. “Many people don’t realize that a medicine that’s safe for people may not be safe for dogs or cats, or that a dose that is safe for people may not be safe for their pets,” she notes.

In fact, some over-the-counter (OTC) human pain relievers can be toxic, or even deadly, in pets. McLean suggests that you check with your veterinarian first if you want to give your animal OTC human drugs.

“You should always check with your veterinarian first before giving your animal any kind of medication, prescription or over-the-counter,” she notes. Similarly, pet owners should not assume that a medicine that is safe for one animal is necessarily safe for another.

Airline passengers with disabilities may soon find that flying is less of a hassle.

As part of what it terms an “ongoing effort to ensure equal access to air transportation for all travelers,” the the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is requiring airline websites and automated airport kiosks to be accessible to passengers with disabilities.

Additionally, DOT will let airlines choose between stowing wheelchairs in a cabin compartment on new aircraft or strapping them to a row of seats -- an option that will ensure that two manual, folding wheelchairs can be transported at a time.

“All air travelers should be treated fairly when they fly, regardless of any disabilities they may have,” said Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “These new rules build on our past work in ensuring that our air transportation system is accessible for everyone, while balancing both airlines’ and passengers’ need for flexibility.”

Deadlines set for improvements

Under the new websites-and-kiosks rule, covered airlines are required within two years to make pages of their websites that contain core travel information and services accessible to persons with disabilities, and to make all of their web pages accessible within three years. Websites are required to meet the standards for accessibility contained in the widely accepted Website Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).

The requirement applies to U.S. and foreign airlines with websites marketing air transportation to U.S. consumers for travel within, to or from the United States.

The rule also requires ticket agents to disclose and offer web-based discount fares to customers unable to use their sites due to a disability starting within 180 days after the rule’s effective date. Airlines are already required to provide equivalent service for consumers who are unable to use inaccessible websites. Under the new rule, airlines must also offer equivalent service to passengers with disabilities who are unable to use their websites even if the websites meet the WCAG accessibility standards.

Kiosk accessibility

In addition, any automated kiosks installed at U.S. airports for services -- such as printing boarding passes and baggage tags -- must be accessible to passengers with disabilities until at least 25% of all kiosks at each airport location are accessible. Even if no new kiosks are installed, 25% of kiosks at each airport location must be accessible within 10 years.

The standards for accessible kiosks are based on those set by the U.S. Department of Justice for ATMs and fare machines in its 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act rule as well as the Section 508 standards for self-contained closed products, such as copiers.

Stowing wheelchairs

DOT’s wheelchair rule provides airlines with more flexibility because it permits airlines to transport passenger wheelchairs by strapping them across a row of seats using a strap kit that complies with applicable safety standards, in addition to stowing them in a closet or similar compartment.

In 2008, DOT issued a rule prohibiting airlines from using the seat-strapping method on new aircraft as an alternative to stowing the manual wheelchair in a closet or similar compartment. In that same rule, DOT allowed the use of a seat-strapping method on existing aircraft. Based on a fuller evaluation of the costs and benefits, DOT has now revised its position to also allow the use of seat-strapping on new aircraft subject to certain conditions.

For example, if an airline chooses to use the seat-strapping method to stow a wheelchair, it must transport two wheelchairs in the cabin if requested unless stowing the second wheelchair would displace other passengers.

If an airline chooses to use a closet to stow a wheelchair, then it will still be required to stow only one wheelchair in the cabin. However, in this case it must install a sign or placard prominently on the closet indicating that a wheelchair and other assistive devices are to be stowed in this area with priority over other items brought onto the aircraft by other passengers or crew, including crew luggage.     

For many severely obese consumers, bariatric surgery seems like the only way to lose the extra weight that’s threatening their lives. It’s obvious that the surgery is effective in the short term but how effective is it three years and more after the surgery?

That’s the question a team of researchers set out to answer.

“Bariatric surgery results in large, sustained weight loss in severely obese populations. Although generally accepted as the most effective means for inducing weight loss in very heavy patients, few studies exist reporting outcomes longer than two years after the surgery was performed," according to background information in the article.

What they found was that at the beginning of the study, the median body mass index (BMI) was 45.9, and the median baseline weight was 284 pounds. Three years after surgery, median percentage weight loss was 31.5% of baseline (90 lbs.) for participants who underwent gastric bypass (RYGB) and 15.9% (44 lbs.) for those who, like New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, had the simpler laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB).

As a group, the participants experienced most of their total weight change the first year after surgery. However, there were differences in the amount of weight loss, as well as in diabetes, blood pressure, and lipid outcomes, according to a study published online by JAMA.

The study included 2, 458 adults undergoing a first-time bariatric surgical procedure as part of routine clinical care by participating surgeons between 2006 and 2009 and followed until September 2012; at the beginning of the study, 774 participants (33%) had diabetes, 1,252 (63%) high cholesterol, and 1,601 (68%) high blood pressure.

Three years after surgery, the percentages of participants experiencing at least partial diabetes remission were 67.5% for RYGB and 28.6% for LAGB. High cholesterol was in remission for 61.9% of RYGB participants and 27.1% of LAGB participants at 3 years. High blood pressure was in remission at 3 years in 38.2% of RYGB and 17.4% of LAGB participants.

"Longer-term follow-up of this cohort will determine the durability of these improvements over time and factors associated with variability in effect," the researchers said.

The study was led by Anita P. Courcoulas, M.D., M.P.H., of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Everyone gets colds and sore throats now and then, and the usual solution is to pop a few ibuprofen or acetaminophen tablets. But do these common remedies do any good?

A new study published in the British Medical Journal suggests they may not. 

A study carried out by the University of Southampton showed that compared with acetaminophen, ibuprofen alone or combined with acetaminopehn provided no advantage for patients overall with respiratory tract infections (otherwise known as colds or sore throats).

Acetaminophen alone, on the other hand, carries a serious overdose risk, especially in children and adults who drink regularly. It's important to read and understand the label before using acetaminophen, sold under the brand name Tylenol.

Additionally steam inhalation, another common treatment method, has no clear benefit and around 2% of people get mild scalding, though not bad enough to see a doctor.

Professor Paul Little, who led the study, said his team found that while ibuprofen was not likely to be effective for most patients, the research did show that ibuprofen is "likely to help children, and those with chest infections."

Patients got worse

The research also showed that patients were more likely to come back within a month with worsening symptoms or new symptoms if they were prescribed with ibuprofen or ibuprofen with acetaminophen. Between 50% and 70% of participants in the study who were prescribed ibuprofen or ibuprofen with acetaminophen came back.

Professor Little admitted this was a surprising result and suggests the treatment may contribute to the progression of the illness. He adds: "This may have something to do with the fact the ibuprofen is an anti-inflammatory.

It is possible that the drug is interfering with an important part of the immune response and leads to prolonged symptoms or the progression of symptoms in some individuals. Although we have to be a bit cautious since these were surprise findings, for the moment I would personally not advise most patients to use ibuprofen for symptom control for coughs colds and sore throat."

For failing to provide adequate wheelchair assistance to passengers in Philadelphia and Charlotte, N.C., US Airways is being fined $1.2 million – one of the largest fines ever assessed by the Department of Transportation (DOT) in a disability case.

“All air travelers deserve to be treated equally and with respect, and this includes persons in wheelchairs and other passengers with disabilities,” said Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “We will continue to make sure that airlines comply with our rules and treat their passengers fairly.”

Under DOT’s rules implementing the Air Carrier Access Act, airlines are required to provide free, prompt wheelchair assistance upon request to passengers with disabilities. This includes helping passengers to move between gates and make connections to other flights.

Numerous violations

DOT's Aviation Enforcement Office found that US Airways committed a significant number of violations of the requirements for wheelchair assistance during 2011 and 2012 at Philadelphia International Airport and Charlotte Douglas International Airport. As part of one of its periodic reviews, the Enforcement Office examined approximately 300 complaints filed by passengers with the airline and DOT relating to incidents at Philadelphia and Charlotte, which covered only a sample of complaints filed over two years against US Airways for the two airports.

The airline’s use of a combination of electric carts and wheelchairs to carry passengers between gates required frequent transfers and led to long delays. Some passengers missed connections because of the delays or were left unattended for long periods of time.

Service improvements

Of the $1.2 million fine, US Airways may use up to $500,000 for improvements in its service to passengers with disabilities that are beyond what DOT rules require.

These include hiring managers to ensure the quality of the airline’s disability services in Philadelphia and Charlotte, creating a telephone line to assist these passengers, purchasing tablets and other equipment to monitor assistance requests, providing compensation to passengers with disability-related complaints, and programming the airline’s computers so that boarding passes identify passengers who request special services.  

Sutter Health, which operates one of the largest hospital chains in California, will pay $46 million and make historic changes in its billing and disclosure of anesthesia charges and services to its patients, insurers and other payers, according to the California Department of Insurance.

“This settlement represents a groundbreaking step in opening up hospital billing to public scrutiny,” said state Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. “The settlement requires Sutter to disclose on its Website every component of its anesthesia billing and what those services cost Sutter.

“Patients, insurers and the public will now be able to compare Sutter’s costs to what it charges for anesthesia. This new transparency should lead to lower prices and point the way to similar billing reforms for all types of hospital services.”

Sutter has over 20 hospitals in northern California, including California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, Sutter General Hospital in Sacramento, and Memorial Medical Center in Modesto. The settlement brings to a close a 2011 whistleblower lawsuit brought against Sutter by billing auditor, Rockville Recovery Associates.

Inflated anesthesia charges

The whistleblower lawsuit alleged that Sutter included a false and misleading charge in its surgery bills. Sutter patients or their insurers received three separate charges relating to anesthesia, including a charge by an outside anesthesiologist, a charge for the operating room and a charge under an obscure Code 37x Anesthesia.

Sutter often charged thousands of dollars for Code 37x Anesthesia for each operation. Yet the services covered by that code were allegedly already captured in the operating room charge, itself a charge in the thousands of dollars. Sutter charged for anesthesia on a time-based or chronometric basis even when no Sutter employee, only the outside anesthesiologist, was present and overseeing anesthesia. Some hospitals also charged separately for anesthesia gasses using code 25x. Sutter’s contracts with insurers also included a clause alleged to unduly restrict insurers from contesting the bills.

Corrective actions

The settlement requires that Sutter:

• Pay $46 million
• Stop billing for anesthesia in the operating room on a chronometric basis and instead charge on a fully disclosed flat-fee basis
• Describe every component of its anesthesia billing
• Post on its Website and provide to insurers and the commissioner the cost to each Sutter hospital of its anesthesia services, updated annually
• Clarify the relationship between its master schedule of charges (known as chargemasters in the health care industry) and the bills that consumers and insurers receive. This change will lead to an increase of transparency and accountability in hospital billing
• More readily permit insurers and other payers to contest Sutter’s bills.

Other defendants

Another defendant, Marin General Hospital, has agreed to implement the same changes to its procedures for billing anesthesia services. Marin General Hospital was a member of Sutter Health during the period of the misconduct alleged by the complaint. In 2010, Marin General Hospital became an independent hospital.

The settlement also includes defendants MultiPlan, Inc. (“Multiplan”) and Private Healthcare Systems, Inc. (“PHCS”), whose provider contracts with Sutter included Sutter’s audit policy that allegedly unduly restricted payers' ability to challenge Sutter’s charges. In addition to paying $925,000, MultiPlan and PHCS agreed to continue to provide notifications to payers about their audit rights.

Once again, Reser’s Fine Foods of Beaverton, Ore., is expanding a recall

This time it's the October 22, 2013, recall of refrigerated ready-to-eat products because they may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. There are no confirmed illnesses associated with these products.

The recalled products were manufactured at the Topeka, KS salad manufacturing facility. No other manufacturing facilities are involved in this recall.

The products listed below were distributed nationwide and Canada and are sold in retail and food service establishments. The packages will be marked with a Use-by-Date or Best By Date and followed by a plant identifier code of 20.

Consumers who purchased the product may take it back to the store for a refund, or discard it.

Ghiringhelli Specialty Foods of Vallejo, Calif., is recalling one specific lot of Trader Giotto’s Caesar Salad (SKU 05161) with a "Use By 11/03" date.

The salad may not list allergens -- wheat, soy and fish (anchovy) -- among the ingredients on the label. No illnesses have been reported to date.

The recall affects only Trader Giotto’s Caesar Salad bearing the "USE BY 11/03" date packaged in 8.5 oz. plastic clamshell. The Use By date is located immediately above the front label.

The 709 salads possibly affected were distributed to Trader Joe’s stores located in Northern California, Reno and Carson City, Nevada. No other lots, products or stores are affected.

Customers who have purchased the recalled Caesar Salad may return it to Trader Joe’s for a full refund.

Consumers with questions may contact Ghiringhelli Specialty Foods at (707) 561-7670, 8 AM – 4:30 PM, PST, Monday-Friday.

Reser’s Fine Foods of Topeka, Kan., is expanding its recall of chicken, ham and beef products to include all products produced between Oct. 10 and Oct. 25, 2013.

The products are being recalled due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes

The company previously expanded its recall on Oct. 26, 2013, to include product produced between Sept. 5 and Oct. 9, 2013. This is in addition to the 22,800 pounds of product recalled on Oct. 22, 2013.

Only products made at the Topeka, Kansas salad facility, also designated by the plant code #20 after the code date “Use By Nov 03 13 #20” are affected by this recall. No other Reser’s facilities are involved in this action.

Products subject to this recall expansion include the following:

The products were distributed to retailers and distributors nationwide.

Consumers with questions about the recall should contact the Reser’s Fine Foods Consumer Hotline at 1-888-257-7913 (8 a.m. – 10 p.m. Eastern Time).

Dutch Treat Salads of Zeeland, Mich., is recalling Mexicali Dip that contains an ingredient recalled by Reser’s Fine Foods.

The product has the potential to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. There have been no reported illnesses associated with the product.

The recalled Mexicali Dip was sold bulk in 10 pound cases under the Lipari Old Tyme label to one distributor in Michigan, who sold it in Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. It was also sold in retail stores in Michigan in bulk 5 pounds bags and 14 ounce containers under the Dutch Treat Salads label. The recalled product has “Use By” dates of 10/18/13 through 11/22/13.

Consumers who have purchased the product should throw it away or return it to the place of purchase for a full refund.

Consumers with questions may call the company collect at 616-772-5921 Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. EST.

A popular saying among journalists who cover state government is that no one's life, liberty or property is safe when the legislature is in session. But governmental entities are restricted to at least some extent by the Constitution, which imposes limits on their power.

Ah, but homeowner associations are another story. These private, non-governmental entities are usually set up by real estate developers to make it easier for them to offload their latest cookie-cutter communities. They are almost completely unregulated and unrestrained and feel free to repress, tax and rebuke their homeowner members without restraint.

Depending on their bylaws, HOA boards can meet in secret, enact new regulations with virtually no restraints, give favorable treatment to some but not all residents and completely ignore the inalienable rights of their members whose taxes -- oops, fees -- keep the HOA in business. 

Horrible but real examples

Think we're going too far? Here's a snapshot, just from last week. 

An HOA in Las Vegas lost its long legal battle to prevent a family with a disabled son from keeping an ambulance parked in its driveway (the family used it to transport him to medical appointments). The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) ruled that the Harbor Cove Homeowners Association violated fair housing and disability-discrimination laws, and had to pay the family $65,000. 

(Prediction: expect a rise in the HOA fees charged to residents at Harbor Cove, to cover the HOA’s legal costs and fines.)

Meanwhile, in Austin, Texas, a blind man is suing his HOA for erecting a fence that impedes his walk to the nearest bus stop.

News station KXAN reports that over a year ago, the city of Austin warned the Berdall Farms HOA that it needed to either remove the fence or put a gate in it, since the ungated fence impeded access for the disabled. Nobody from the HOA would actually speak to the news media, but did send out a press release saying the fence is for the safety and benefit of all HOA residents.

(Prediction: expect a rise in the HOA fee charged the residents at Berdall Farms, to cover the HOA’s legal costs and fines in addition to whatever they spend on the fence.)

No way home

But HOA members in Glen Haven, Colorado, face an even worse dilemma.  The main road leading to their neighborhood, The Retreat at Glen Haven, was washed out in a devastating flood six weeks ago, and for now, the only way to reach their neighborhood is over a private road running through a nearby cattle ranch.

The ranch owner told a local CBS affiliate that “she would allow homeowners to use the road with a written agreement from The Retreat’s HOA, but the HOA board refused to sign the agreement without any explanation.”

On the HOA website, a spokesman for the board released a statement saying “Our RLA Board of Directors have had to make this very difficult decision based upon their desire to protect the long-term interests and integrity of the association …. I will not go into the reasons for this decision, but know that it was an extremely difficult decision for the board.” Though, presumably, less difficult than suffering weeks of homelessness because your HOA board thinks letting you drive home across a cattle ranch somehow threatens its integrity.

(Prediction: we are never buying into an HOA community.)

If someone on your gift list wants a consumer electronics product, you should be shopping now, not waiting until Black Friday or Cyber Monday. Waiting may mean missing some of the best deals.

“Sales on electronics tend to peak from early to mid November,” said Loren Bendele, president of Savings.com, a coupon and deal site. “After November 14 the deals kind of go away for a while. So if you're looking for electronics, now is a great time to buy.”

Bendele's advice is based on his company's research, tracking sales and discounts all year long. He and other researchers have found that the shopping game has changed significantly in recent years as retailers have developed highly competitive online strategies.

Walmart starting sales now

An example is Walmart's announcement that it isn't waiting for Black Friday to start offering Black Friday deals. The nation's largest retailer says it will offer discounts typically reserved for Black Friday and Cyber Monday right now for consumers shopping online.

"We know that our customers start shopping for the holidays on Nov. 1 because historically our traffic spikes the day after Halloween," said Joel Anderson, president and CEO of Walmart.com. "Customers want to relax with friends and family during the holidays, and with our early deals we are helping them make the most of their time and helping them stretch their dollars further."

But Bendele sees it as a continued evolution in which the in-store sales of Black Friday – and now Thanksgiving night – are becoming less important.

Soured on the madness

“I think people have soured on the madness of Black Friday,” he said. “The getting up early, fighting the crowds and standing in line is less attractive. The main reason is they don't have to do it anymore. You can go online and get the same or better deals.”

Data backs that up. Last year in-store Black Friday sales dipped two percent. However, Black Friday online sales went up 26%. Research has also borne out the fact that, doorbuster deals aside, the in-store savings aren't that great on Black Friday.

While consumers have always lined up on Black Friday in hopes of getting the season's hot gift on sale, retailers began to fan the enthusiasm after the economic crash of 2008, when they had to compete for fewer holiday dollars. That year a Walmart employee was trampled to death at a Long Island store. Since then the deals have gotten bigger – even if the number of spectacularly marked-down items were limited in number.

Wising up

But in the last year or two, consumers have been wising up. Bendele says the best deals on toys tend to be during the first two weeks of December. The best prices on apparel tend to be in mid-December. There may be a good reason, however, to do some Black Friday shopping – if you aren't looking for a specific item.

“Black Friday and Cyber Monday are really a great time to find deals because the the sales are on specific products,” Bendele said. “If you aren't choosy about the make and model of a TV, for example, you'll find once significantly marked down. If you see a laptop that's on sale, you might say 'that's a really good price on a laptop. I might as well get that one.'”

By the same token, if you are looking for a specific make and model of a TV, or any other gift, you might do better waiting closer to the holidays, when merchants tend to mark everything down. And since there are fewer shopping days this holiday season, retailers may be more aggressive in their markdowns.

Enduring tradition

Some people go shopping on Black Friday, not so much for the deals, but for the communal experience -- to rub shoulders with fellow consumers embracing the search for gifts at bargain prices. Bendele says they needn't worry about Black Friday fading away.

“First, Black Friday has become a tradition and traditions don't usually go away,” he said. “Second, you have a lot of people who are procrastinators, who really can't get in the mood to shop for the holidays until Thanksgiving arrives. I think people still do that and will do that for a while.”

According to Valpak’s 2013 holiday research, Black Friday will be a force for at least another another year. In a survey more than three-in-five of consumers say they will shop on Black Friday this year. More than one-quarter of consumers in the survey say they would be willing to skip the Thanksgiving pumpkin pie and head to the store for an early deal on Black Friday.

It’s hard not to feel a little bit sorry for whatever nameless Hallmark artist designed this year’s holiday sweater Christmas ornament: while trying to avoid giving offense to a narrow subsection of the American population, he or she wound up offending pretty much everybody.

Even Americans who don’t celebrate Christmas probably know the carol Deck the Halls, which includes the line “Don we now our gay apparel” (a slightly archaic way of expressing the English-language concept “Let us change out of our drab, everyday clothing in lieu of bright, festive garments”).

Like thousands of other English-language words, the term “gay” has multiple meanings, depending on context. It originally meant “festive” or “happy”—when historians refer to the last decade of the 19^th century as the “Gay Nineties,” that’s the definition they’re using—but in recent decades it’s also come to refer to people who are sexually attracted to members of their own gender. Which some other people find offensive, which is why Hallmark’s Christmas tree ornament altered the lyrics of Deck the Halls to say “Don we now our fun apparel.”

Oops. Few Hallmark customers took this well, if the comments on the company’s Facebook page are any indication. Indeed, the company managed to offend people on every conceivable level: traditionalists didn’t like seeing ancient Christmas carols altered.

Keeper of traditional values

“Hallmark claims to be the keeper of traditional values; then, you change the words to a [centuries] old Christmas Carol to appease maybe 2% of the population. What next will you remove the word Christmas from your cards and maybe refer to "winter holiday" or "winter solstice" so that you don't offend people. I am so sick of this PC society that will defer to whatever fringe of society that is yelling the loudest,” wrote one woman on Nov. 1.

Another man wanted to know:  “Why are you willing to alter a part of our national history in order to avoid upsetting a very small minority? The minority being people who have a childish and immature reaction to the word "gay" as it’s used in this context….”

Not only did Hallmark censor the word “gay,” they didn’t even use an accurate synonym, as an amateur linguist pointed out: “Where's the "Fun" sweater? I was hoping it was here so I could tell you and your marketing team how idiotic you all are! The word is GAY. GAY means happy -- not fun.”

Some supporters

While the majority of Facebook comments criticized Hallmark’s decision, there were a few from people who supported it, such as this: “I think what you did was fine. If ‘gay’ meant the same thing as it did when the song was written, SURE . But I can foresee it being bought and used as a way to spread the acceptance of homosexuality WHICH is not what it meant all those years ago!!”

Hallmark responded to the outcry by releasing a statement which said: “Today [the word 'gay'] has multiple meanings, which we thought could leave our intent open to misinterpretation. The trend of wearing festively decorated Christmas sweaters to parties is all about fun, and this ornament is intended to play into that, so the planning team decided to say what we meant: ‘fun.’”

As professional writers ourselves, we humbly suggest that if Hallmark wanted to express the concept “Let’s have fun,” there were limitless ways they could’ve done so without altering the words of a public domain Christmas carol in a manner which leaves them open to charges of pandering to homophobia.

But in all fairness to Hallmark, this isn’t the only example or even the worst example of an organization making a fool of itself via avoidance of the word “gay.” The most infamous (and hilarious) example probably stems from the summer of 2008, when the anti-gay American Family Association decided that henceforth, its OneNewsNow website would never use the word “gay,” and thus programmed the autocorrect to replace any instance of the word “gay” with “homosexual.”

This might have gone unnoticed if not for an athlete named Tyson Gay, who spent that summer qualifying for the Olympics, which is why sports fans reading OneNewsNow were regaled by such headlines as “Homosexual eases into 100 final at Olympic trials,” even though (as the AP via OneNewsNow reported) “Homosexual misjudged the finish in his opening heat and had to scramble to finish fourth.”

We didn’t bother checking OneNewsNow’s archives to see if they included any stories about famed American author Homosexual Talese, or historic-anniversary articles marking the day American World War Two fighter pilot Paul Tibbets, flying his famous plane the Enola Homosexual, dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, but we’re sure the archives are 100 percent free of gay apparel, just like Hallmark’s contemporary Christmas catalog.