Current Events in January 2018

In a lengthy State of the Union speech, President Trump ticked off a list of economic accomplishments during his first year in office and promised it was just the beginning.

"Our massive tax cuts provide tremendous relief for the middle class and small business, to lower tax rates for hard-working Americans," Trump said. "Millions of Americans will have more take-home pay, starting next month. A lot more."

Most consumers will, in fact, see an increase in their take-home pay under new tax withholding tables. That's largely due to a nearly doubling of the standard deduction to $12,000.

Infrastructure plan

As for the future, Trump proposed spending $1.5 trillion on an infrastructure program to improve roads, highways, bridges, and airports. He said the program would make transportation safer and easier while also providing jobs and boosting economic growth.

"We built the Empire State Building in just one year," Trump said. "Isn't it a disgrace that it can now take 10 years just to get a minor permit approved for the building of a simple road? I am asking both parties to come together to give us the safe, fast, reliable, and modern infrastructure that our economy needs and our people deserve."

Even though infrastructure spending is popular with both political parties, Mark Hamrick, Bankrate.com's senior economic analyst, says the divisive partisan atmosphere in Washington poses a challenge to getting a deal.

Broken lawmaking process

"Unfortunately, the lawmaking process has been broken for quite some time," Hamrick told ConsumerAffairs. "There’s no getting around the fact that Congress is highly dysfunctional, where passing meaningful legislation has become the exception, rather than the rule."

One reason a bipartisan infrastructure plan is not a slam dunk is the very real differences between Democrats and Republicans on how to pay for these projects.

"Democrats want to see more public funding, while many Republicans prefer more private sector involvement," Hamrick said. "As with tax reform, the quality of infrastructure legislation will rely on the details."

In the meantime, Hamrick said other economic issues will preoccupy Washington -- namely approving a spending plan and raising the debt ceiling.

"Sadly, hopes have recently dimmed on whether lawmakers will be able to avoid passing another temporary spending bill with a February 8 budget deadline looming," he said. "After that, the critically-important debt ceiling loom in early March."

Hamrick acknowledges that consumers will soon see more take-home pay, thanks to the new tax law, but suggests it's long overdue. He says the 2.5 percent rise in average hourly earnings over the last year, cited in the President's speech as an accomplishment, remains the most disappointing aspect of the nearly nine-year economic expansion.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is urging manufacturers to limit the number of pills that come in each box of Imodium in hopes of stemming misuse and abuse of the anti-diarrhea pills.

The over-the-counter medication contains the active ingredient loperamide, which has been called “the poor man’s methadone.” Taking large amounts can relieve symptoms of opioid withdrawal or result in a cheap, opioid-like high.

Abuse of the drug can have deadly results, the FDA warned in 2016. High doses can cause dangerous, rapid heart rhythm and other problems that can ultimately result in death.

Life-threatening cardiac events

Imodium has been associated with 48 reported cases of serious cardiac events since the drug’s approval in 1976 through 2015; 31 of those reported cases required hospitalization, and ten people died, the FDA said.

These cases were “particularly among people who are intentionally misusing or abusing high doses of loperamide in attempts to self-treat opioid withdrawal symptoms or to achieve a feeling of euphoria," the agency noted in a Drug Safety Communication.

Highlighting the fact that the problem is worsening, the agency said half of those 48 cases were reported after 2010.

Single-dose packaging

To curb misuse of the drug, the FDA has asked manufacturers to change how they package the drug. Instead of allowing it to be sold in large bottles or bulk packaging, the agency wants packages to contain only enough medication for short-term diarrhea relief.

One package, for example, might contain eight 2-milligram capsules in blister packaging -- a two-day supply.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb called the move "a fairly unprecedented and novel action regarding an over-the-counter (OTC) product that we’re concerned is contributing to the death toll associated with the opioid epidemic."

In 2016, the agency asked companies to change the labels on products sold under the brand name Imodium A-D, as well as store brands and generics, to warn consumers against taking a higher-than-recommended dose of the medication.

Four different police departments have reported bizarre instances in which on-duty officers inexplicably passed out or became sick behind the wheel.

The departments later determined that the officers had suffered from carbon monoxide poisoning, prompting scrutiny of the Ford Explorers that make up police fleets across the country.

The news gave new credence to complaints that civilians have made in recent years, claiming that a leak in the design of the Ford Explorer may be causing exhaust fumes to poison its drivers.

Safety watchdogs now say they have counted more than 1,300 complaints that Ford Explorer owners have made to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) about dizziness, nausea, and vomiting that they regularly experience behind the wheel.

But Ford Motor Company has refused to issue a formal recall over Explorers. Instead, the automaker is blaming police contractors for causing the exhaust leaks. The company does not have an explanation for the civilian cases.  

Ford denies charges, places blame on police

At all four police departments, officers reported dangerous incidents while riding in Ford Explorers. Marleen Courville, a police officer in Henderson, Louisiana, suddenly passed out behind the wheel of her cruiser last April. Her Explorer flipped in the resulting car crash.

In Massachusetts, the Auburn Police Department said that four officers were hospitalized with carbon monoxide poisoning last August. One of the sickened officers had passed out  shortly before rear-ending another vehicle.

In California, Newport Beach Police Officer Brian McDowell was responding to a call in 2015 when he lost consciousness, causing him to veer across the roadway and crash into a tree.

And the Austin Police Department pulled 400 Explorer patrol vehicles from its fleet last July after five officers were hospitalized for carbon monoxide poisoning over a period of four days.

Despite these reports, Ford says that its vehicles remain safe and places the blame on the police departments for modifying the vehicles.

"What we found was that the police had modified these vehicles after they left the Ford factory,” Ford Motor Company spokesman Elizabeth Weigandt tells ConsumerAffairs. She says the modifications had left “gaping holes in the back of these vehicles, where equipment had been installed.”

Ford later agreed to repair the police vehicles, "even though we did not create those holes ourselves."

No vehicle checks or repairs

Captain James Thibodeaux of the Henderson Police Department responds that Ford has never inspected the Explorer involved in the crash that injured his officer. He says that the automaker contacted the police department’s insurer about arranging an inspection, but has yet to do so.

As for Ford’s blaming the carbon monoxide leak on vehicle modifications, "they can’t make that determination from this point at the case because they haven’t looked at the vehicle,” he tells ConsumerAffairs.

Thibodeaux says medical tests confirmed that the officer had suffered carbon monoxide poisoning. After her crash, the police agency installed carbon monoxide detectors in the remaining ten vehicles in its small fleet. The issue hasn’t appeared in the other vehicles, he says.  

But despite Ford’s public promises to repair police vehicles, Thibodeaux says that Ford has never offered to repair or evaluate the remainder of his fleet.

"It’s not like we bought them from Walmart. We can’t just take a receipt and get a different vehicle,” he says.

Company claims vehicles are safe

Ford has not yet responded to follow-up inquiries about the Henderson case. As for the civilian cases, Weigandt only says that Ford Explorers are safe, and that dealerships will repair the vehicles if customers are concerned.

"We haven't found carbon monoxide levels beyond what everybody is exposed to everyday,” he said.

Ford has refused to share the exact level of carbon monoxide that they found in the civilian vehicles, other than saying that the levels are low and the vehicles are safe. But a warning from the Explorer owner’s manual suggests that the issue may be more widespread than Ford is letting on.

The owner’s manual says: “Do not drive your vehicle if you smell exhaust fumes. Carbon monoxide is present in exhaust fumes. Take precautions to avoid its dangerous effects.”

Asked about the manual, Weigandt only repeats that the level of carbon monoxide found in Explorers isn’t above the level “that people are exposed to everyday.”

Pressure mounting for recall

Ford’s assertions come as the consumer safety group Center for Auto Safety is pressuring the company to recall 1.3 million Explorers, saying they found 1,381 complaints describing exhaust leaks inside of the car.

While Ford is offering free repairs, those come too late for people like Brian McDowell, the Newport Beach police officer who crashed into a tree.  He says in a lawsuit against Ford that the severe injuries he suffered as a result of the crash have forced him to leave his job. He had worked in the department for 12 years.

"I fractured my right orbital, had a traumatic brain injury, injured my neck, my back, dislocated my shoulder, lost part of my sense of taste," McDowell told a local news station.

Officers aren’t just suing for crashes. In another lawsuit against Ford, Austin Police Department Officer Ryan Hancock says he suffered permanent nerve damage as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Officers often leave their vehicles running while they wait for calls during their shifts, potentially upping their exposure in cars that have the defect.

While the science is clear on the dangers of intense, short-term exposure to carbon monoxide, the effects of long-term exposure to lower amounts of carbon monoxide have not been studied extensively.

“Short term exposure to high concentrations of carbon monoxide certainly produces changes in intellectual functioning,” says a paper published in the British Journal of Medicine.

Amazon, JP Morgan Chase, and Berkshire Hathaway announced today they are forming a non-profit joint venture to manage and streamline their employee healthcare programs.

The CEOs of these giant companies -- Jeff Bezos of Amazon, Jamie Dimon of Chase, and Warren Buffet of Berkshire Hathaway -- say the new company will focus on technology solutions that will provide high-quality health benefits at a reasonable cost.

Individually, the three firms have hundreds of thousands of employees who could participate in the new health benefits system. The three corporate leaders say the challenge posed by the current healthcare system is one of the biggest society faces today.

'Hungry tapeworm on the American economy'

“The ballooning costs of healthcare act as a hungry tapeworm on the American economy," said Buffett.

"Our group does not come to this problem with answers. But we also do not accept it as inevitable. Rather, we share the belief that putting our collective resources behind the country’s best talent can, in time, check the rise in health costs while concurrently enhancing patient satisfaction and outcomes.”

The three participating companies each bring different areas of expertise to the venture. Amazon brings technology, Berkshire Hathaway is a major insurance player, and JPMorgan Chase offers financing.

“The healthcare system is complex, and we enter into this challenge open-eyed about the degree of difficulty,” said Bezos. “Hard as it might be, reducing healthcare’s burden on the economy while improving outcomes for employees and their families would be worth the effort."

As early as last September there was speculation that Amazon would make a move into the pharmacy business.

Dimon says Chase employees want transparency, knowledge, and control in the management of their health benefits.

“The three of our companies have extraordinary resources, and our goal is to create solutions that benefit our U.S. employees, their families and, potentially, all Americans,” Dimon said.

Few details so far

So far, there are very few details about how the proposed plan would operate or whether it would eventually be offered to consumers other than employees at the three companies. However, the announcement sent shockwaves through the corporate healthcare system.

In pre-market trading on Wall Street, stock prices in pharmacy benefit managers and insurance companies -- entities most likely to be affected by the new non-profit player in the space -- dropped as much as five percent.

Pharmacy benefit managers, in particular, have figured prominently in the debate over high prescription drug prices. Some pharmaceutical companies have blamed them for the high cost of their drugs, a charge the benefit managers have denied.

In the release announcing the new venture, Bezos, Buffet, and Dimon made a point of saying their companies would pursue lower costs "through an independent company that is free from profit-making incentives and constraints."

A group of 100 child development experts and advocates has published an open letter urging Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to shut down the site’s new messaging app aimed at kids.

Back in December, Facebook launched the free Messenger Kids app, touting it as a safe way for kids under 13 to chat with family members and parent-approved friends.

Since parents are given control of their child’s account, Facebook asserted that Messenger Kids would be filling a “need for a messaging app that lets kids connect with people they love but also has the level of control parents want.”  

But health experts argue that younger kids aren’t ready to have their own social media accounts and say the app should be pulled.

Targeting younger children

Led by Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, the group of experts and advocates includes psychiatrists, pediatricians, educators, parenting organizations, and the children’s music singer Raffi Cavoukian.

"Messenger Kids is not responding to a need - it is creating one," the letter states. "It appeals primarily to children who otherwise would not have their own social media accounts," the letter reads. Another passage criticized Facebook for "targeting younger children with a new product."

The group says children under 13 aren’t old enough to navigate the complexities of online relationships or protect their own privacy.

“They also do not have a fully developed understanding of privacy, including what’s appropriate to share with others and who has access to their conversations, pictures, and videos,” the letter continued.

‘Gateway drug’

When the app was launched, Facebook said there were “no ads” or paid content downloads inside the app. It also assured parents that their “child’s information isn’t used for ads.”

In defense of the app, Facebook released a statement emphasizing that parents are “always in control” of their child’s activity.

"We worked to create Messenger Kids with an advisory committee of parenting and developmental experts, as well as with families themselves and in partnership with National PTA. We continue to be focused on making Messenger Kids the best experience it can be for families," said Antigone Davis, Facebook’s global head of safety, in a statement to the Washington Post.

However, the company has been accused of using Messenger Kids as a ‘gateway drug’ to get kids hooked on social media at a younger age, making them more likely to use their service when they become teenagers and can be subjected to ad-targeting.  

Health effects of technology

The group says it’s “particularly irresponsible” of Facebook to launch an app geared towards preschoolers when there is growing concern about how social media use affects children’s development.

“Already, adolescents report difficulty moderating their own social media use,” they write. “Messenger Kids will exacerbate this problem, as the anticipation of friends’ responses will be a powerful incentive for children to check – and stay on – a phone or tablet.

“[T]he app’s overall impact on families and society is likely to be negative, normalizing social media use among young children and creating peer pressure for kids to sign up for their first account,” they said.

“Raising children in our new digital age is difficult enough,” they added. “We ask that you do not use Facebook’s enormous reach and influence to make it even harder. Please make a strong statement that Facebook is committed to the wellbeing of children and society by pulling the plug on Messenger Kids.”

Earlier this year, Mark Zuckerberg vowed to try to make users “happier” in 2018 by making certain changes to the site. Shutting down Messenger Kids would be a highly positive move, the group of experts contend.

“Doing better is leaving younger children alone and allowing them to develop without the pressures that come with social media use,” they said.

Walmart faces a racial discrimination lawsuit in California after a consumer charged a Walmart store keeps hair and beauty products used by African Americans under lock and key.

Essie Grundy, a mother of five, held a news conference in Los Angeles with her attorney, Gloria Allred, to announce the litigation. Grundy said on a trip to the Walmart near her home, she noticed the skin cream she wanted was locked in a glass case and available only with the aid of a store employee.

Retailers such as Walmart often keep expensive merchandise, and items frequently shoplifted, in locked cases to reduce losses from theft. Grundy said she went to customer service to complain and was told it was a corporate policy.

Allred says the basis of the suit is that the retailer is perpetuating a racial stereotype that African Americans are thieves, a charge Walmart has denied.

Walmart response

“We’re sensitive to this situation and also understand, like other retailers, that some products such as electronics, automotive, cosmetics, and other personal care products are subject to additional security,” the company said in a statement to the media.

But the Walmart statement also said that individual store managers make the determination about what items are placed in locked cases.

“While we’ve yet to review a complaint, we take this situation seriously and look forward to addressing it with the court,” Walmart said, adding that it does not tolerate discrimination of any kind.

Grundy said she didn't think about suing until she returned to Walmart to purchase a comb, costing less than a dollar, and found it was also under lock and key. She said she was told that a store employee would escort her to the checkout line to pay for it.

Meanwhile, she said she observed that other, generic beauty products were displayed on shelves with no locked case separating them from consumers.

'Need to be treated equal'

“I just feel that we need to be treated equal,” Grundy said at the news conference.

There are many reasons stores lock some items in display cases. A poster who identifies herself as a former employee at a CVS Pharmacy, wrote on Quora last week that her store locked up razors because “they're expensive and small enough to shoplift.” She was also not that happy about it.

"These security units are a pain in the neck," she wrote. "They are expensive, labor intensive, and no employee likes them."

Windows users received an emergency update over the weekend as Microsoft raced to address yet another issue in the Meltdown/Spectre malware saga.

In this case, Microsoft's action was specifically designed to disable a fix that Intel issued to neutralize the Spectre Variant 2 attack. Unfortunately, that fix reportedly caused machines to reboot unexpectedly. Microsoft additionally claimed the Intel fix could, in come cases, cause a loss of data or file corruption.

To prevent users from losing data, the Windows update disables Intel's fix that addresses CVE-2017-5715, otherwise known as the Variant 2 Spectre attack.

The issue arose in early January as reports began to surface of a design flaw in some Intel processors. Intel responded that the issue affected all processors, including those made by other manufacturers.

Initial concerns focused on performance, with some reports claiming that Intel's fix could significantly slowed a computer's speed. Intel denied this, saying performance would vary depending on workloads.

Not exactly a smooth process

But addressing the security flaw has not exactly been a smooth process. Three weeks ago, Microsoft briefly suspended its Windows update for AMD processors after it heard from some customers who said their machines would not boot up after the update.

"After investigating, Microsoft has determined that some AMD chipsets do not conform to the documentation previously provided to Microsoft to develop the Windows operating system mitigations to protect against the chipset vulnerabilities known as Spectre and Meltdown," the company said at the time.

Those updates have now resumed without incident. Intel, meanwhile, told customers last week to refrain from installing current firmware updates designed to counter the threats until further instructions.

Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal reports Intel informed some of its customers in China about the security flaw before it told the U.S. government about it.

The Journal quotes an Intel spokesman as saying it intended to inform government agencies about the newly discovered flaw, but the news became public before it could act.

There's little doubt that ATMs have made consumers' lives easier. There is no reason to write a check at the bank when you need cash because an ATM is available 24 hours a day.

But this convenience for consumers is becoming increasingly risky for banks and other ATM operators, as the machines have become vulnerable to criminal ingenuity.

Law enforcement calls the crime "jackpotting." Cyber criminals essentially reprogram an ATM, giving them control so they can withdraw all of its cash. The threat first surfaced in Europe and Asia, but now the Secret Service says it's beginning to happen in the U.S.

Security blogger Brian Krebs reports jackpotting thieves gain physical access to an ATM, usually by posing as maintenance technicians, and load malware into the machines. After placing a sign on the machine telling consumers it is out of service, they return and enter a code that causes the ATM to spit out all of its cash.

Krebs says he reached out to ATM manufacturer NCR Corp. to find out if its machines have been victims. At the time, they had not.

Later, NCR issued a bulletin warning its customers about jackpotting attacks on other manufacturers' ATMs and predicting it would become an industry-wide issue in the coming months.

'Call to action'

"This should be treated as a call to action to take appropriate steps to protect their ATMs against these forms of attack and mitigate any consequences,” NCR Corp. warned.

Jackpotting poses no threat to consumers, but it could result in more restricted access to these convenient cash dispensers in the future. Krebs notes most jackpotting attacks are carried out against stand-alone ATMs, especially those in unsupervised locations.

In the future, ATM operators may rethink the placement of these machines or add additional levels of security.

Consumers earned a little more in December but spent most of it, according to the latest report from the Commerce Department.

Personal income rose 0.4 percent after gaining a revised 0.3 percent in November, and wages were up 0.5 percent in December. The report shows consumers also increased their spending by 0.4 percent on the heels of a revised 0.8 percent gain in November.

While the income and spending numbers balance each other out on paper, the Commerce Department report makes clear that much of the spending came at the expense of savings. The nation's savings rate fell to a 10-year low, a fact that troubles economist Joel Naroff, of Naroff Economic Advisors.

Warning sign

"I have been writing for months now that the savings rate is a warning sign," Naroff told ConsumerAffairs. "We are at levels that are usually seen just before a recession. Consumers are tapped out, and while the tax cuts may subsidize consumption for a while, the structure of the cuts doesn’t hold out hope that it will do that for long."

The savings rate dropped to 2.4 percent, the lowest it has been since September 2005. For 2017, the savings rate was 3.4 percent, the lowest in a decade. A low savings rate usually signals a slowdown in both consumer spending and economic growth.

No savings at all

Particularly troubling, says Naroff, is that low to middle income households are not saving at all. While there is a lot of economic optimism surrounding the recently enacted tax law changes, Naroff worries it won't help those who need it most.

"Low to middle income households don’t get very large tax cuts, so the additions to spending are likely to be modest, especially if low to moderate income households use some of the money to bolster their weakening balance sheets," he said.

On the positive side, Naroff says the gains in income were pretty good. However, he says they need to come a little faster to help consumers start saving again.

If the wild value fluctuations Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have experienced isn't enough to make investors uneasy, a mishap on a cryptocurrency exchange might be.

Coincheck is one of the largest digital exchanges in Japan, where billions in cryptocurrency are traded. Overnight it announced that some $400 million in NEM cryptocurrency has gone missing. Exchange officials said the money was "illicitly" sent outside the exchange when it disappeared.

Details of the disappearance aren't known at this point, but Coincheck executives said they have taken immediate steps to protect all client assets. That includes suspending withdrawals and temporarily halting deposits of NEM coins. In fact, it has halted all trading except in Bitcoin.

Values plunge again

The story has had predictable market repercussions. NEM's value fell 14 percent to 81 cents in a 24-hour period.

Cryptocurrencies and the investors who own them have been on a wild ride so far in 2018, and it's still January. Bitcoin, which went from less than $1,000 to nearly $20,000 in 2017, fell to below $11,000 Friday.

So far this month, Bitcoin -- and other cryptocurrencies like Ethereum and Ripple -- have lost and gained five to 10 percent of their values in one or two trading sessions. Still, there are plenty of traders willing to jump in and buy when prices fall.

"Millennials are the driving force behind of all this," financial columnist Patrick Graham told ConsumerAffairs in November. "Bitcoin and the blockchain technology are the manifestation of how coding and the power of the crowd can come together to create new products, services, and things."

Graham says millennials also like the revolutionary and disruptive nature of Bitcoin and the fact that nobody owns it or its blockchain, which is a growing list of encrypted transactions.

Regulatory talk

But lately, hedge funds and other institutional investors have hopped on the cryptocurrency bandwagon with sizable investments, perhaps diluting some of the revolutionary appeal. At the same time, governments -- notably South Korea and China -- have begun talking about regulating the digital currencies.

The regulatory talk gained more traction this week as world financial leaders gathered for their annual confab in Davos, Switzerland. British Prime Minister Theresa May and her Chancellor, Phillip Hammond, talked this week about the need for greater regulation of cryptocurrency trading.

Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz, who is attending the Davos meeting, told a Bloomberg interviewer that he sees no legitimate role for cryptocurrencies in the world economy. He also said regulating cryptocurrencies would ultimately drive them out of existence.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released two new fact sheets to help consumers determine which dietary supplements are safe and effective.

The first fact sheet lists supplements that are promoted to improve exercise and athletic performance, while the second fact sheet lists supplements for weight loss.

In each database, the NIH describes what is known about the effectiveness and safety of many ingredients in the products.

Fitness supplements

Sellers of fitness supplements -- which are sometimes called “ergogenic aids” -- may claim that their products improve strength or endurance, increase exercise efficiency, help to achieve a performance goal more quickly, and increase tolerance for more intense training.

"Dietary supplements marketed for exercise and athletic performance can't take the place of a healthy diet, but some might have value for certain types of activity," Paul Coates, director of the Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) at the NIH, said in a statement. "Others don't seem to work, and some might even be harmful."

In this fact sheet, the NIH aims to cut through the confusion by giving a rundown of the science available on more than 20 ingredients found in fitness supplements. Antioxidants, beetroot, tart cherry, branched-chain amino acids, caffeine, creatine, and protein are just a few of the most common.

While creatine might be helpful in specific circumstances -- like “short bursts of high-intensity activity like sprinting or weight lifting,” the NIH says it won’t help for endurance efforts like distance running or swimming.

Similarly, drinking beetroot juice might improve aerobic exercise performance, but there’s no scientific evidence that supplements containing beetroot powder have the same effect.

Weight loss supplements

When it comes to dietary supplements for weight loss, consumers have plenty of options to choose from. However, some weight loss supplements contain ineffective or unsafe ingredients.

The NIH says its list of dietary supplements for weight loss is intended to help consumers navigate the “confusing set of options in the marketplace.”

"Americans spend over $2 billion a year on dietary supplements promoted for weight loss, but there's little evidence they actually work," said Dr. Anne L. Thurn, director of the ODS Communications Program. "People may not know that many manufacturers of weight-loss supplements don't conduct studies in humans to find out whether their product works and is safe.”

This new resource provides details on more than 24 ingredients commonly found in weight loss supplements, including green tea extract, capsaicin, chromium, garcinia, hoodia, and raspberry ketones.

Chromium, for example, is safe and might help you lose a very small amount of weight and body fat. However, the agency says raspberry ketones haven't been studied enough to know whether they're safe or effective.

And while it’s safe to enjoy a cup of green tea, you’re better off avoiding green-tea extract pills. The NIH notes that green-tea extract has been linked to liver damage in some people. Bitter orange also carries safety warnings.

The NIH urges consumers to talk with their healthcare provider before taking a dietary supplement to lose weight or improve fitness, especially if they have a medical condition or are taking any other medication that might interact with the supplement.

Toy retailer Toys "R" Us says it will close 180 of its stores in the coming months as it tries to reorganize its business under bankruptcy protection.

The company declared bankruptcy in September 2017, saying it need space to restructure more than $5 billion in debt. At the time, company CEO Dave Brandon cited an “increasingly challenging and rapidly changing retail marketplace” as the reason for the retailer’s current woes.

Much of the challenges have come from Amazon and Walmart, retailers with lower profit margins and stronger online channels.

“The actions we are taking give us the best chance to emerge from our bankruptcy proceedings as a more viable and competitive company that will provide the level of service and experience you should expect from a market leader,” Brandon wrote in a letter to customers, announcing the store closings.

The company said about 4,500 employees will be affected by the move, either by losing their jobs or being transferred to another Toys "R" Us store.

For consumers, it means they might have to travel farther to shop at a Toys "R" Us location. Here is the list of stores that will close between February and April:

Alabama

2600 McFarland Blvd. East, Tuscaloosa AL

335 Summit Blvd., Birmingham AL

Arizona

801 W. 32nd Street, Yuma AZ

12801 North Tatum Blvd., Paradise Valley AZ

9139 Indian Bend Rd., Scottsdale 4619 N. Oracle Rd., Tucson AZ

7000 E. Mayo Blvd., Scottsdale AZ

US 60 and Signal Butte Rd., Mesa AZ

Arkansas

2616 S. Shackleford Rd., Little Rock AR

California

42500 Jackson St., Indio CA

1189 Simi Town Ctr. Way, Simi Valley CA

26573 Carl Boyer Dr., Santa Clarita CA

960 Lakes Dr., Covina CA

1600 S. Azusa Ave., Puente Hills CA

2575 E. Imperial Highway, Brea CA

530 Westminster Mall, Westminster CA

20120 Hawthorne Blvd., Torrance CA

2550 Canyon Springs Pkwy S., Riverside CA

700 “A” Onstott Rd., Yuba City CA

2785 E. Bidwell St., Folsom CA

1330 Fitzgerald, Pinole CA

4505 Century Blvd., Pittsburg CA

600 Francisco Blvd., San Rafael CA

5461 Lone Tree Way, Brentwood CA

1400 Gateway Blvd., Fairfield CA

3938 Horton, Emeryville CA

2179 Monterey Hwy., E. San Jose CA

865 Blossom Hill Rd., San Jose / Almade CA

3520 W. Shaw Ave., Fresno CA

31250 Court House Dr., Union City CA

10640 Trinity Pkwy., Stockton CA

3900 Bristol Street, Santa Ana CA

3665 Grand Oaks, Corona CA

1240 W. Morena Blvd., Mission Bay CA

8181 Mira Mesa Blvd., Mira Mesa CA

1990 University Drive, Vista CA

Colorado

1150 S. Ironton, Aurora CO

Connecticut

376 North Universal Drive, North Haven CT

275 Union St., Waterbury CT

3491 Berlin Turnpike, Newington CT

169 Hale Road, Manchester CT

Delaware

1061 N. Dupont Highway, Dover DE

Florida

1625 Apalachee Pkwy., Tallahassee FL

1900 Tyrone Blvd., St. Petersburg FL

3908 West Hillsborough Avenue, Tampa FL

6001 Argyle Forest Blvd., Orange Park FL

Spring 708 West State Rd. 436, Altamonte FL

21697 State Road #7, Boca Raton FL

10732 SW Village Pkwy., Port St. Lucie FL

450 South SR 7, Royal Palm Beach FL

2601 W.Osceola Parkway, Kissimmee FL

6001 West Sample Road, Coral Springs FL

3214 N John Young Pkwy., Kissimmee FL

Georgia

2601 Dawson Rd., Albany GA

2955 Cobb Parkway, Smyrna GA

6380 No. Point Parkway, Alpharetta GA

1155 Mt. Vernon Hwy., Dunwoody GA

6875 Douglas Boulevard, Douglasville GA

8160 Mall Parkway, Conyers GA

221 Newnan Crossing Bypass, Newnan GA

132 Pavilion Parkway, Fayetteville GA

Indiana

3928 E 82nd Street, Indianapolis IN

8800 US 31 South, Greenwood IN

Iowa

1211 E. Army Post Rd., S. Des Moines IA

8801 University Ave., Des Moines IA

Illinois

1610 Deerfield Rd., Highland Park IL

16 East Golf Rd., Schaumburg IL

295 Center Drive, Vernon Hills IL

5001 Lincoln Highway, Matteson IL

6420 W. Fullerton, Bricktown IL

7750 South Cicero Avenue, Burbank IL

5660 Touhy Avenue, Niles IL

Kansas

4646 W. Kellogg, Wichita KS

8500 W 135th Street, Overland Park KS

Kentucky

4900 Shelbyville Rd., St. Mathews KY

1155 Buck Creek Rd., Simpsonville KY

1965 Star Shoot Parkway, Lexington KY

Louisiana

137 Northshore Blvd., Slidell LA

Maine

6 Bangor Mall Blvd., Bangor ME

200 Running Hill Road, Portland ME

Maryland

8401 Mike Shapiro Drive, Clinton MD

Massachusetts

302 Providence, Dedham MA

70 Worcester Providence Tpk/Rt. 146, Millbury MA

50 Holyoke Street, Holyoke MA

217 Hartford Ave., Bellingham MA

6110 Shops Way, Northborough MA

Shoppers World Plaza, 1 Worcester Road, Framingham MA

Michigan

5363 Harvey Street, Muskegon MI

2620 Crossing Circle, Traverse City MI

5900 W. Saginaw Highway, Lansing MI

4923 28th Street South East, Grand Rapids MI

3725 Carpenter Road, Ann Arbor MI

3725 Washtenaw, Ann Arbor MI

Minnesota

14100 Wayzata Blvd., Minnetonka MN

170 89th Ave., Blaine MN

8236 Tamarack Village, Woodbury MN

900 West 78th Street South, Richfield MN

Mississippi

1003 Bonita Lakes Circle, Meridian MS

200 Bass Pro Dr., Pearl MS

Missouri

1901 Bernadette, Columbia MO

201 Silver Springs Rd., Cape Girardeau MO

5590 St. Louis Mills Blvd., Bridgeton MO

220 THF Blvd., Chesterfield MO

Nebraska

3505 S. 140th Plaza, Omaha NE

Nevada

2150 North Rainbow Blvd., Las Vegas NV

7020 Arroyo Crossing Parkway, Spring Valley NV

New Mexico

45 Hotel Circle, Albuquerque NM

North Carolina

801 Fairview Road, Asheville NC

7001 Fayetteville Road, Durham NC

3300 Westgate Drive, Durham NC

New Hampshire

29 Gusabel Avenue, Nashua NH

New Jersey

1280 Rt. 22 & St. James Ave., Phillipsburg NJ

137 Route 35, Eatontown NJ

100 Promenade Blvd., Bridgewater NJ

2700 Route 22 East., Union NJ

909 US Hwy 1 South., North Brunswick NJ

Rt. 541 & Cadillac Road, Burlington NJ

2135 Route 38, Cherry Hill NJ

7 Wayne Hills Mall, Wayne NJ

545 Route 17 South, Paramus NJ

98 Route 10 West., East Hanover NJ

Kids World 900 Center Drive, Elizabeth NJ

50 International Drive South, Mt. Olive NJ

New York

139-19 20th Ave., College Point NY

24-30 Union Square E, Union Square NY

5181 Sunrise Hwy., Sayville NY

5214 Sunrise Hwy., Massapequa NY

2335 Marketplace Drive, Henrietta NY

1569 Niagara Falls Blvd., Buffalo NY

401 Frank Sottile Boulevard, Kingston NY

708 Upper Glen St., Glens Falls NY

221 Wade Road Extension, Latham NY

2700 Central Park Ave., Yonkers NY

66 Metropolitan Ave., Middle Village NY

1350 Corporate Drive, Westbury NY

108 Veterans Memorial Highway, Commack NY

461 Lycoming Mall Cir, Williamsport NY

1530 Ridge Rd. West, Greece NY

Ohio

6251 Glenway Ave., Western Hills OH

2661 Miamisburg-Centerville Rd., Dayton OH

7841 Mentor Ave., Mentor OH

3610 West Dublin-Granville Rd., Dublin OH

Oklahoma

1119 SE 66th St., Oklahoma City OK

5609-E Rogers Ave., Fort Smith OK

560 Ed Noble Pkwy., Norman OK

Pennsylvania

100 Welsh Road, Horsham PA

6680 Peach St., Erie PA

3700 William Penn Highway, Monroeville PA

104 Bartlett Ave., Exton PA

2003 Cheryl Dr., Ross Park Mall PA

301 Oakspring Road, Washington PA

18/Valley View Dr., Beaver Valley Route PA

Rhode Island

300 Quaker Lane, Warwick RI

South Carolina

254 Harbison Boulevard, Columbia SC

South Dakota

450 E. Disk Drive, Rapid City SD

Tennessee

7676 Polo Ground Blvd., Memphis TN

5731 Nolensville Rd., Nashville TN

Texas

801 Mesa Hills Dr., West El Paso TX

9730 Katy Freeway, Houston TX

170 E. Stacy Road, Allen TX

7730 N. MacArthur Blvd, Irving TX

420 E. Round Grove Rd., Lewisville TX

13710 Dallas Parkway, Dallas Galleria TX

1309 W. Pipeline Rd., Hurst TX

5800 Overton Ridge Blvd., Hulen TX

Utah

4042 Riverdale Rd., Ogden UT

1122 Fort Union Boulevard, Midvale UT

Virginia

14173 Crossing Place, Potomac Mills VA

12153 Jefferson Ave., Newport News VA

Washington

3567 N.W. Randall Way, Silverdale WA

1325A S.E. Everett Mall Parkway, Everett WA

6104 N. Division Street, Spokane WA

Wisconsin

18550 W. Bluemound Rd., Brookfield WI

2161 Zeier Road, Madison WI

This spring, iPhone and iPad users will be able to install a new update that will let them opt out of the feature that lets Apple slow down their aging iPhones.

The new software update, iOS 11.3, will also include several new Animoji options, the ability to view health records in the Health app, and new ways to experience augmented reality, according to a sneak preview of the update recently released by Apple.

Power management

Apple’s next operating system update comes on the heels of huge criticism and several lawsuits over allegations that the company had been throttling battery performance on older iPhone models.

In an interview with ABC News, Apple CEO Tim Cook promised consumers that a new update was on the way -- one which would allow them to turn off the feature that slows down their iPhones as the battery deteriorates.

While users will have the ability to opt out of this functionality, Apple doesn’t recommend users do so since it can cause unexpected shutdowns.

The new update will give users the ability to check on the health of their phone’s battery and see if the battery needs to be serviced.

Health records

Additionally, the preview shows a new Health Records feature that will let users compile their medical data from multiple providers in one easily accessible place.

“The new Health Records feature brings together hospitals, clinics, and the existing Health app to make it easy for consumers to see their available medical data from multiple providers, whenever they choose,” Apple said.

“Patients from participating medical institutions will have information from various institutions organized into one view and receive regular notifications for their lab results, medications, conditions and more,” the company said, adding that the data will be encrypted and password protected.

Other features

Here are a few other features consumers can expect from iOS 11.3:

• Animoji options. A lion, bear, dragon, and skull will join the 12 different Animoji that were previously available to iPhone X users. This feature uses the Face ID motion sensing camera to let users animate emoji with their own movements.

• Music videos. Apple will add music videos to its Apple Music service, which could help it better compete with video streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime video. “Users can stream all the music videos they want without being interrupted by ads,” the company said.

• Augmented reality updates. Apple’s ARKit augmented reality apps will get some updates too. ARKit will be able to identify and place virtual objects on vertical surfaces, such as walls. Previously, it could only recognize horizontal surfaces.

The new update will be available to consumers this spring. Apple says iOS 11.3 will be free for those with iPhone 5S and later, iPad Air and iPad Pro, iPad fifth gen, iPad Mini 2 and later, and iPod Touch sixth gen.

Consumers shopping for a new LG washing machine may have to pay more for it. The South Korean manufacturer has announced it is raising the price of most of its washing machine models imported to the U.S. an unspecified amount.

The price hike follows the Trump Administration's announcement Monday that it is imposing tariffs on imported solar panels and washing machines in an effort to protect American jobs.

The tariff will be 20 percent on the first 1.2 million units that are imported, and will rise to 50 percent on any units above that number. It isn't clear how much of the tariff will be borne by consumers and how much by the manufacturer, wholesalers, and retailers.

For competitive reasons, LG may try to keep the price hike modest so that it will not lose marketshare to U.S. manufacturers.

Unintended consequences

Economist Joel Naroff, of Naroff Economic Advisors, says it is hard to say how many American jobs would be protected by the tariff since there is a limited number involved in making washing machines. GE and Maytag are among the largest U.S. producers of these appliances. However, he says the tariff could have unintended consequences.

"I suspect the complaints to the World Trade Organization (WTO) will rise and countries will retaliate, but they may do that by imposing regulations that make it more difficult for U.S. companies to operate in their countries," Naroff told ConsumerAffairs. "If those regulations stick around longer than the tariffs, the long-term costs would exceed the short term gains."

LG, meanwhile, has already begun work on an appliance manufacturing plant in Tennessee. It expects it to be completed by the end of this year.

Samsung, another major South Korean appliance manufacturer, has not yet commented on the U.S. tariff and how it will respond.

Target has announced it will team with Shipt to provide same-day delivery of select groceries, consumer electronics, and other products in Florida.

The service will begin February 1 in Tampa and South Florida. A week later, it will begin in Daytona Beach, Fort Myers, Gainesville, Gulf Shores, Jacksonville, Naples, Sarasota, Orlando, Space Coast, St. Augustine, Tallahassee, and Treasure Coast.

Target says the new service will cover more than 6.3 million households in the state, with delivery as quickly as within one hour if requested.

“The addition of Target stores to Shipt’s online marketplace across Florida allows us to deliver on our promise to offer quality products at great prices by making Target’s wide assortment available to our dedicated members,” said Shipt CEO Bill Smith.

“Florida’s growing community of Shipt members continues to be loyal and enthusiastic about the service, and we look forward to expanding throughout the state with our newest retail partner, Target.”

Target acquiring Shipt

Target announced last month it is acquiring Shipt for $550 million in cash. At the time, it made clear that the combination would be a key element of the retailer's expansion of delivery capability, helping it to compete with Amazon and Walmart.

Target said the acquisition of Shipt would help it increase its digital fulfillment efforts by bringing same-day delivery services to approximately half of Target stores by early 2018. The company said it expects the service will be available at the majority of its stores, in all major markets, before the 2018 holiday shopping season.

In this beginning phase, Target said deliveries will be limited to the products in the Florida test market. By the end of next year, it said it expects same-day delivery will include all major product categories at Target.

Top priority

“Same-day delivery was at the top of our list when we were thinking about ways to make shopping at Target even easier,” said John Mulligan, Target's executive vice president and chief operating officer. “Shipt’s personalized, customer-focused approach fits perfectly with our commitment to deliver a convenient, exceptional experience and we’re excited to begin offering same day service in Florida.”

Shipt hires shoppers to pick up items ordered by its members, who pay a $99 per year membership fee. It currently operates in 72 U.S. markets.

Amazon offers same day delivery to Prime members on orders of $35 or more. Walmart offers same day pick-up on grocery orders.