The Survive and Thrive Boomer Guide

Skylight recalls power adapters sold with digital photo frames due to electric shock hazard

Skylight is recalling about 65,000 series I power adapters for Skylight digital photo frames in the United States and about 159 in Canada.

The power adapter casing can break when plugged into an electrical outlet, exposing its metal prongs, posing an electrical shock hazard.

Skylight has received eight reports of adapters breaking and exposing their metal prongs, including one report of an electric shock to a consumer.

Best wishes on Veterans Day

There are about 20.4 million veterans in America, and they make up less than 10 percent of the adult population in the country, according to the Pew Research Center.

The center offers these facts about those who have served in the military and how they’re changing:

1. Gulf War-era veterans now account for the largest share of all U.S. Veterans, surpassing Vietnam-era veterans in 2016.
2. The share of the U.S. population with military experience is declining with 7 percent of U.S. adults as veterans in 2016, down from 18 per cent in 1980.
3. More women will be veterans with the 9 percent in 2016 increasing to 18 percent by 2045.
4. Fewer members of Congress have prior military experience with 20 percent of senators and 19 percent in the current Congress having served compared to 81 percent of Senators and 75 percent of House members after the Korean War.
5. The Department of Veterans Affairs receives a low favorability rating.

AT&T to pay $60 million to settle FTC charges it ‘throttled’ customers with ‘unlimited’ data plans

Photo: Luismt94

AT&T will pay $60 million to settle a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit over allegations that the wireless provider misled millions of its smartphone customers by charging them for “unlimited” data plans while reducing their data speeds.

In a lawsuit filed in 2014, the FTC alleged that AT&T failed to tell its unlimited data plan customers that, if they reach a certain amount of data use in a billing cycle, AT&T would reduce – or “throttle” – their data speeds. As a result, many mobile phone applications, such as web browsing and video streaming, became difficult or nearly impossible to use.

“AT&T promised unlimited data – without qualification – and failed to deliver on that promise,” said Andrew Smith, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “While it seems obvious, it bears repeating that Internet providers must tell people about any restrictions on the speed or amount of data promised.”

5 signs your marriage is over

By Adam J. Edelstein, attorney and partner, Edelsteins, Faegenburg & Brown

Guest Blogger

Relations are complicated, and when things begin to get difficult in a marriage, people wonder whether they should continue to work on it or admit defeat.

Here are five things which may show your marriage is over:

1. You don’t communicate

In one study, 53 percent of couples reported that a lack of communication was a core reason for their divorce. In any relationship, communication is crucial to build on a foundation of honesty and trust. When you and your partner won’t address relationship issues or share in each other’s joy, you’ve lost that connection. 

If this critical connection is damaged beyond repair, your marriage could be on a slippery slope toward divorce.

Coastline ceramic mugs are being recalled by Hit Promotional Products due to burn and laceration hazards

Hit Promotional Products is recalling about 34,000 coastline ceramic mugs.

The mugs can crack or break when used with or exposed to hot liquids, posing burn and laceration hazards.

Hit Promotional Products has received 10 reports of the mugs cracking or breaking when hot liquids were poured into them. No injuries have been reported.

Facts and figures for Halloween 2019

Source: WalletHub

 

Copyright 2019, Rita R. Robison, Consumer and Personal Finance Journalist

Eating organic food for a week can reduce pesticide levels in the body, study shows

I’m a big proponent of organic foods. My dad, Minor H. Slingsby, died of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He was a farmer. I didn’t know non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma was linked to pesticide exposure when my dad was diagnosed with the disease. None of his doctors in Central Washington state said anything about it. I learned about the connection when listening to a National Public Radio story. It said the children of farmworkers were being diagnosed with high levels of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma because they were in fields sprayed with pesticides with their parents.

I buy most of my food at my local food co-op, with as much as possible of it being organic. I have immune system problems, so organic food is helpful to me.

This recent study adds to the evidence of how organic food benefits people.

A study done at the University of California found that eating organically-grown food for one week can significantly reduce the levels of pesticide in the body. Researchers found the levels of toxins decreased by an average of 60.5 percent after six days of eating organic food.

Nearly 1 million Toyota, Scion, and Lexus vehicles recalled due to possible failure of replaced airbags

Photo: IFCAR

About 928,000 vehicles are being recalled because the driver or front passenger airbag inflators were replaced as part of the Takata airbag recall using the same defective inflators. The replacement inflators may explode due to the propellant degrading after long-term exposure to high humidity and temperature. An inflator explosion could result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, causing serious injury or death.

Dealers will replace the defective airbag inflator or the airbag assembly using an alternate inflator. There will be no charge for the repairs. Toyota will begin notifying owners Nov. 15.

Vehicles affected include model year:

FDA proposes black box warning and patient checklist for breast implants

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued draft guidance Wednesday on proposed labeling for breast implants. The guidelines recommend that manufacturers include a black box warning and patient decision checklist in the device’s labeling and update recommendations for device rupture.

A black box warning is the strictest warning put in the labeling of prescription drugs or devices by the FDA to call attention to serious or life-threatening risks.

The FDA said it heard from a public advisory panel meeting and from information it’s gathered from patients and stakeholders that more needs to be done to protect women who are considering breast implants.

Don't be pressured into buying or switching to a Medicare Advantage plan during open enrollment

It’s that time of year again. Advertisements for Medicare Advantage plans are flooding my mailbox and email. I’m even getting phone calls about the plans. And, every time I turn on the TV, there’s another ad about Medicare advantage, with infomercials to be tolerated, too.

From Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, people on Medicare can:

• Switch from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage plan or vice versa.
• Join, drop, or switch a Part D prescription drug plan if they are on Original Medicare.
• Switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan if they are already on one.