Number of FDA “orphan drug” designations rising dramatically

This short article by Gayatri Rao, the Food and Drug Administration's director of Orphan Products Development, explains that, in recent years, drug companies have been filing many more "orphan drug" applications than they used to. Orphan drugs are drugs aimed at treating people with rare diseases. Drug companies sometimes say that it's too costly for them […]

Will the CFPB Also Release a Debt Collection Study on July 28?

by Jeff Sovern As we have previously noted, the CFPB has scheduled a July 28 debt collection field hearing, and could announce the beginning of the SBREFA process, leading to a rule-making, that day.  NCLC's April Kuehnhoff speculates that the Bureau will also release the results of its debt collection studies then.  The Bureau's arbitration study […]

Recent announcements of DOJ’s Consumer Protection Branch

July 15, 2016 – District Court Enters Permanent Injunction Against Minnesota Food Manufacturer and Company’s Managers to Prevent Distribution of Adulterated Food Products July 12, 2016 – Residents of Three States Charged with Unlawful Sale of Dietary Supplements July 11, 2016 – Southern California Man Pleads Guilty for His Role as Sales Manager in Fraudulent […]

When Is a Threat to Litigate Not a Threat to Litigate? Sometimes in a Debt Collection Letter

by Jeff Sovern Last week, I posted the abstract for our article, Are Validation Notices Valid? An Empirical Evaluation of Consumer Understanding of Debt Collection Validation Notices. In this post, I wanted to write about something that didn’t appear in the abstract: the extent to which respondents thought a collection letter said the collector would […]

CFPB Announces Debt Collection Field Hearing July 28; Sneak Peak at the New Rules?

Here.  The Bureau is likely to announce the Small Business Regulatory Fairness Enforcement Act (SBREFA) proceeding that day, which will entail giving some information about what its proposed debt collection rules are likely to look like.

American Banker Story: Pence’s Statements on the CFPB and Other Banking Issues

The story is headlined Pence VP Pick Could Shape Trump's Banking Policy (free content).  Here is what the article says about Pence's view of the CFPB: When the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was just a legislative proposal, Pence objected to giving a new agency so much power; he would likely support efforts to reform the structure […]

CFPB Orders Santander Bank to Pay $10 Million Fine for Illegal Overdraft Practices

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced yesterday that it has ordered Santander Bank, N.A. to pay a $10 million fine for illegal overdraft service practices. Santander’s telemarketing vendor deceptively marketed the overdraft service and signed certain bank customers up for the service without their consent. In addition to paying the civil money penalty to the […]

New air travel law called “an amazing win for consumers”

The Washington Post reports: After months of debate over the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill, and at an apparent impasse over privatizing air traffic control, Congress has settled on a compromise — with some unexpected benefits for the average air traveler. The House and Senate have agreed on an extension that would fund the agency […]