On behalf of Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC posted in Creditor Harassment on Wednesday, June 19, 2013
A mistake on your credit report often comes as an unpleasant, even devastating surprise. You may have discovered an error when you applied for a mortgage or sought financing for a new vehicle, or discovered the error in some other way. The resulting denial or higher interest loan can be frustrating, but you can take action to fix the mistake.
In one recent case, a woman learned when she applied for mortgage preapproval that a veterinarian bill appeared to be in collection. It was an error, and it drove two of her credit reports down by 100 points. So she worked to clear up the mistake as quickly as possible.
On behalf of Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC posted in Creditor Harassment on Friday, June 14, 2013
A news report has found that a recently created consumer protection agency has grown to a functional agency despite attacks from critics. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was created as part of the Dodd-Frank financial reform package to help protect consumers in financial matters.
Some members of congress are trying to obtain congressional oversight of the agency's funding, and the agency lead's confirmation has been delayed for more than a year. Despite these challenges, the CFPB has:
On behalf of Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC posted in Social Security Disability Benefits Eligibility (Illness on Wednesday, June 12, 2013
A migraine is more than just a headache. This medical condition can be so frequent and so severe that suffers are disabled and unable to work. The symptoms can include headache, but also nausea, sensitivity to light, sound and touch along with symptoms of aura.
Migraines affect up to 60 percent of Americans, with about 2 percent of the population having chronic migraines, or migraines more than 15 days per month. A lead research says migraines can have an economic cost of $30 billion a year, not to mention the pain felt by sufferers. Despite these huge consequences, migraines are often overlooked for medical research.
By Andrea Domaskin posted in Social Security Disability Benefits Eligibility (Illness, Injuries, Mental Conditions) on Friday, June 7, 2013
Mental illness can have a serious stigma attached to it. Recently, President Obama called for a more open national discussion on mental health so that the issue could be brought into the light and dealt with. Too many people in Pittsburgh and other cities across the United States who struggle with a mental condition don't get the help they need. They may be embarrassed, or they may not be able to afford treatment for their mental illness.
The president spoke at a White House conference on mental health. Topics at the conference included insurance coverage for mental health care, the symptoms of mental illness in young people and providing veterans with better access to services. The goal: to lessen the stigma that people with mental health conditions feel and to encourage people with mental illnesses to get help.
On behalf of Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC posted in Creditor Harassment on Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Credit card companies, banks, student loan companies all well known for turning to third-party debt collectors. They're not the only companies that turn to debt collectors, however. Even a Pennsylvania court system has used third-party debt collectors to try to get people, including very poor people, to pay old debts.
According to a news organization, the court system in one district began using third party debt collectors after the revelation that the courts had not collected about $1.5 billion in fees, fines, and restitution over four decades. According to the news organization, the collection efforts were aggressive and sometimes resulted in creditor harassment. The news organization's investigation found that the third-party agencies had threatened to have some debtors arrested and outsourced work to subcontractors that it should not have.
On behalf of Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC posted in Social Security Disability and SSI Supplemental Security Income on Saturday, June 1, 2013
More than 1 million children in the U.S. receive Supplemental Security Income, a federal disability program that provides financial support and offers access to health insurance for people who have limited financial resources and are completely disabled. Most of the children who receive SSI because of their disabilities continue to receive SSI when they become adults, but the government would like that to change.
The federal government has announced that it is seeking ways to give children who receive SSI a better chance for a good education and the possibility of a career. It plans to create projects in several states that would offer special services to better support children with disabilities. The government will give up to $10 million a year for five years to each state that is selected for the initiative.
On behalf of Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC posted in Consumer Protection on Thursday, May 30, 2013
Since 2011, federal regulators have been investigating whether banks have used inaccurate information in attempts to collect on overdue credit card debts. The probe by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) started in 2011 over allegations that a large bank was using documents full of errors in lawsuits to collect from borrowers. Now, a news organization says that the investigation has widened.
The newspaper four unnamed sources who say that the OCC is looking into the process that banks use to verify that consumers actually owe debt before they take legal action. The OCC has not commented on the issue. If the agency found debt collection abuses, it could fine the companies and order them to change their practices. Banks could also be in trouble with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
On behalf of Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC posted in Consumer Protection on Friday, May 24, 2013
Debt collectors are known for their abusive tactics. When people's debts become unmanageable and debt collectors begin calling, they sometimes turn to debt-settlement companies to help them eliminate their debts. Unfortunately, these companies may also be unscrupulous, leading to consumer protection complaints against them as well as collection agencies.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)recently filed a complaint against two debt-settlement service providers, including one in New York. The federal agency says the providers charged illegal advance fees for their settlement services.
The CFPB says these companies regularly charged consumers fees upfront, before it actually settled any debts. Meanwhile, the consumers' debt could grow deeper and their credit history could be harmed because of the companies' fees and ineffective services.
On behalf of Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC posted in Social Security Disability Benefits Eligibility (Illness, Injuries, Mental Conditions) on Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Could creatine, the supplement that bodybuilders use to gain strength, help patients with fibromyalgia? New research suggests the supplement could help some patients with this severe medical conditiongain muscle strength, adding a potential new treatment to the array of medical and alternative therapies that people with fibromyalgia use to control their symptoms. But some doctors say that the supplement would likely not be beneficial for patients.
In a 16-week, double-blind study, fibromyalgia patients who took creatine experienced small strength gains that patients who took a placebo did not. Unfortunately, the supplement did not help patients with other symptoms and pain of the disorder.
On behalf of Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC posted in Veterans Benefits on Friday, May 17, 2013
A recently published study showed a link between the herbicide Agent Orange and prostate cancer in American veterans who served in Vietnam. Previous studies showed a link between Agent Orange and increased prostate cancer risk, but they did not determine if Agent Orange exposure contributed to more dangerous types of the medical condition.
The recent study focused on nearly 3,000 U.S. veterans who had a prostate biopsy. Thirty-three percent were diagnosed with prostate cancer, including 17 percent who were diagnosed with high-grade prostate cancer. Agent Orange exposure was also associated with a more than doubled risk for the deadliest types of prostate cancer, a 75 percent increased risk for high-grade prostate cancer and a 52 percent increased risk for overall prostate cancer.
