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Blog Post | Consumer Tips

In the path of Hurricane Ida? You can take steps to protect your finances now | Teresa Murray

Hurricane Ida is projected to make landfall in Louisana late Sunday. Residents can start thinking now about how to protect themselves from opportunists and scam artists.

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Blog Post | Consumer Tips

T-Mobile Data Breach: Tips to protect yourself | Teresa Murray

The hackers say they have personal data on 100 million people. Long before this breach, you should have assumed some or all of your personal information was compromised

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News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund | Consumer Tips, COVID-19

STATEMENT: Nursing home vaccine mandate will save lives

"We applaud the move to get more nursing home staff vaccinated. This will save lives."

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News Release | US PIRG | Consumer Tips, Consumer Protection

Back to school: financial literacy tips for college students, teens

During this time of year, families are thinking about the children going back to school, and for parents who are sending their kids to college, it can be a bit overwhelming. A key to addressing those concerns is making sure their teens are prepared for “adulting” -- in other words, taking care of their own lives.

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Blog Post

Another longtail of COVID-19: medical debt | Patricia Kelmar

How the pandemic has worsened the medical debt crisis

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News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Report: Getting off the hook of a predatory tow, state-by-state

Every year, millions of Americans have their cars towed without their consent from private property or a public street. U.S. PIRG Education Fund has identified 14 common sense towing protections that should be available to consumers in every state, and researched which states offer those safeguards.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG | Solid Waste

Students host hundreds of local actions for Youth Earth Week

BOSTON - The Student PIRGs, a student environmental organizing group, is partnering with local organizations, student governments and elected officials to host in-person and virtual actions to celebrate Youth Earth Week, a national effort of more than 250 actions around the country to protect the environment, from April 19 to 23.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

New report: Electrifying America’s buildings by 2050 could be like taking 65 million cars off the road

New report documents the benefits of electrifying the majority of buildings in America to consumers and the environment. 

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News Release | USPIRG

New report proposes roadmap for how to transform America’s transportation infrastructure

America’s current transportation system has been designed, built and centered around the automobile, and it is a public health disaster. U.S. PIRG Education Fund and Frontier Group’s latest report, Transform Transportation, identifies the numerous harmful health impacts caused by America’s car-centric transportation system and provides a three-step roadmap toward a healthier, more sustainable approach to transportation infrastructure.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

New report: COVID-19 cases in nursing homes drop by 80 percent after mass vaccinations

There are many reasons for optimism, particularly the huge turnaround that started in the second half of December when vaccines started rolling out. We found that has led to a decline in nursing home cases exceeding 80 percent. But this is not a time to act irresponsibly or get overly confident.

 

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Report | U.S. PIRG Education Fund | COVID-19

Putting Consumers First

U.S. PIRG Education Fund, the Student Borrower Protection Center and Consumer Action have released a report recommending that  CFPB should use the full extent of its authority to take immediate action to strengthen its consumer complaint tool, hold companies accountable for providing complete and timely responses to consumers, and leverage consumer complaints related to the pandemic to support oversight and regulatory action to protect consumers.

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Report | Georgia PIRG Education Fund

The Fix Is In

We rely on our smartphones. When they break, we need them fixed — fast. Unfortunately, there are numerous barriers to fixing our phones. Manufacturers might offer a dearth of repair options or digitally lock our phones so we can’t repair them. And when we can’t fix them, and have to get rid of them and buy new ones, that has a big consequence on our environment. According to the new report, “The Fix Is In” by U.S. PIRG Education Fund, independent shops offer repairs that some manufacturers won’t.

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Report | U.S. PIRG Education Fund | Higher Ed

Automatic textbooks billing: an offer students can't refuse?

New report says deals with publishers could make college textbooks more expensive

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Report | Georgia PIRG Education Fund and Environment Georgia Research & Policy Center | Solid Waste

Beyond Single-use Plastics

Every day, we use millions of plastic bags, straws and utensils, and foam cups and containers for just a few minutes before tossing them, and then they can pollute our environment for hundreds of years. We can protect our health and marine animals by banning or limiting these products, as hundreds of communities and nine states have already done. Banning Single-use Plastics describes the specific problems, actions, and best practices for reducing these polluting items.

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Report | Georgia PIRG Education Fund | Consumer Protection, Food

Food Recall Failure

Our research found the majority of grocery stores fail to warn the public about hazardous food recalls. While they collect significant information about Americans shopping habits to sell us more food, they aren't doing enough to use that information to protect the public health.

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Blog Post

Dude, where’s my car? | Mark Morgenstein

Getting your vehicle towed can be a memorable experience -- not in a good way

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Blog Post | COVID-19

COVID-19 tests and vaccines are free to consumers. End of story. | Patricia Kelmar

Some consumers continue to be billed for COVID tests and vaccines. So let's get the story straight here.

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Blog Post | Consumer Tips

An underappreciated way to fight the opioid crisis AND keep our waterways clean | Patricia Kelmar

 

Saturday, April 24, is National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.

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Blog Post

Plastic waste solutions hiding in plain sight: Recycled content requirements | Haley Clinton

This blog is the second in a series examining policy solutions to the plastic pollution crisis that are proven and replicable. This section covers recycled content requirements.

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Blog Post

Another face of toxic-free beauty advocacy | Gina Werdel

We spoke to Je’May Ward, a clean beauty blogger from North Carolina, about what clean beauty advocacy means for her.

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News Release | US PIRG Education Fund

Consumer guide: tips to help consumers avoid cars damaged by flood water

The current shortage of used cars on the market -- and correlated increased prices -- could make consumers more desperate and vulnerable to falling for a bad deal.

Blog Post

How to spot fake online reviews

With the overwhelming number of reviews found both on website listings and social media, we pulled together the best tips to spot fake reviews when shopping online.

Blog Post

What I decided to do after shopping for long-term care insurance

Before listening to In Case You Get Hit By a Bus, I didn’t know about insurance that covers the costs of long-term care, such as home health care or nursing home care, for people who need assistance with daily living activities. 

Report | Georgia PIRG Education Fund

Trouble in the Air

More than one in six Americans, 58.4 million people, suffered through more than 100 days of elevated air pollution in 2020. Our report calls attention to the very real public health problems air pollution causes in both cities and rural areas across the country, such as asthma, heart issues, and premature death. It explains how global warming will make air pollution worse, and why tackling climate pollution has an impact on air quality. 

News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

New report: More than one in six Americans experienced greater than 100 days of polluted air in 2020

More than one in six Americans, 58.4 million people, suffered through more than 100 days of elevated air pollution in 2020, according to a new report from Environment America Research & Policy Center, Frontier Group and U.S. PIRG Education Fund. Air pollution increases the risk of premature death, asthma attacks, cancer and other adverse health impacts. 

  • COVID-19 CONSUMER TIPS
    Avoid online scams, protect your credit and more. We have assembled a set of consumer tips and guides, and will add more in the days to come.
    OUR TIPS
  • THE FIX IS IN
    Our survey shows that independent shops are struggling to access parts, service information and repair software which is necessary to fix phones — which manufacturers won’t let these independent shops have.
    OUR REPORT
  • FOOD RECALL FAILURE
    Will your supermarket warn you about hazardous food? Our survey grades 26 of the largest grocery stores in the country to determine the efficacy of their policies and practices notifying consumers about food recalls.
    OUR REPORT
  • CHAIN REACTION V
    The overuse of antibiotics contributes to antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which can cause life-threatening infections in people. Our report ranks restaurant chains on their policies relating to antibiotic use in their beef supply chains.
    SEE THE GRADES

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