Iowa farmers have sent hundreds of comments to their U.S. senators, urging them to support legislation to change the way beef is labeled in the country.

The American Beef Labeling Act would be a return to country-of-origin labeling rules. Four meatpacking corporations control 80% of the U.S. cattle market, which allows just a handful of companies to import billions of pounds of beef from other countries and label it a U.S. product.

Ava Auen-Ryan with Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement said the practice is deceptive and gives a handful of producers an outsize influence in the beef market, adding the measure would change the rules.

"Only cattle that are born, raised and processed in America can be labeled as a product of the U.S.," Auen-Ryan explained.

The country-of-origin labeling rules were originally part of the 2008 Farm Bill, but were repealed in 2015. Ryan and farm advocates want the measure to be included in the next Farm Bill, which is scheduled to be debated this month.

Ryan argued the glaring loophole in beef labeling laws creates negative market and price conditions for American cattle farmers even as the price of hamburger, steak, and other beef products is rising sharply, along with profits of the large corporate meatpacking companies.

"It saturates the market and undercuts what American farmers are getting paid for their cattle," Ryan contended. "At the same time that they're doing that, they are also increasing the prices in stores for consumers."

Critics have argued country-of-origin labeling could create confusion among customers and a costly, two-tiered pricing system for producers.

Proposed changes to the U.S. Postal Service are causing concern for Illinoisans.

Reduced delivery days and "Forever" stamp price increases are just two of several strategies under consideration for 2025. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said his revisions for the nation's post offices would boost service reliability, curb excessive costs and improve overall productivity. One suggestion is to impose a one-day delay for any mail farther than 50 miles from a regional processing center.

Annie Norman, campaign manager for the Save the Post Office Coalition, said mail is a virtual lifeline, especially in outlying areas.

"Rural folks rely on the Post Office to deliver prescription medications, or live chicks for their farms," Norman pointed out. "We're talking about seniors and veterans, folks with disabilities, Indigenous communities, and they all need the Postal Service to pay bills and get their Social Security checks."

Adjusting mail pick-up and drop-off times between post offices and Illinois' five processing plants to lower transportation costs is another suggestion, which also could reduce carbon emissions from postal trucks. DeJoy said the changes would save the agency $3 billion annually. The Postal Service relies on postage and product sales and services to fund its operations.

The Postal Service has faced declining mail volume due to more technology-supported communication. Rising fuel costs for delivery trucks have hurt its bottom line, as well as keen competition from private delivery companies. The agency knows its traditional mail delivery model is outdated, so Norman argued Postal Service officials should find more revenue streams to stay afloat.

"No one in this country's asking for slower mail service at higher prices," Norman asserted. "One way that they can expand the revenue of the Postal Service and dig themselves out of a hole is to focus on new revenue, through services like postal banking, to places that really need it."

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics cited the average wage for an Illinois postal worker is nearly $60,000 dollars a year. The agency is embracing partnerships with other package transport companies, like Amazon, to offer new services in hopes of generating additional dollars.

Colorado's surprise billing law does not currently limit out-of-network billing for ambulance services, and new analysis shows the true costs to consumers and insurers.

State Rep. Kyle Brown - D-Louisville - represents Colorado House District 12.

He said lawmakers will likely need to step in, because people who need emergency care don't have time to shop around, or figure out if they're calling an in-network ambulance.

"It's important for us as a state to make sure that ambulance services are well compensated for what they do," said Brown, "and that patients don't end up with a gigantic bill."

Nearly six in ten of the most common ambulance services billed at much higher out-of-network rates, according to the Center for Improving Value in Health Care report.

The price tag for basic services range from $300 to $1,000, and some patients have been hit with surprise bills as high as $2,500.

Ambulance costs also vary depending on who's paying. Commercial insurance companies paid as much as three times what Medicare paid between 2018 and 2023.

Brown noted that Medicare prices are generally viewed as a benchmark rate for services.

"So this data that has been put together is really helpful," said Brown, "because it helps us to understand what insurance companies are currently paying for these services, as a relationship to what Medicare would also pay."

Colorado was the first state in the nation to pass a surprise billing statute in 2019, which Brown noted helped pave the way for the No Surprises Act passed by Congress in 2021.

"But Colorado's statute doesn't protect people from surprise bills in the ambulance setting," said Brown. "And so we need to pass legislation to protect consumers from surprise billing in the ambulance space."




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Mainers are encouraged to be on the lookout for increasingly sophisticated scams during the holiday season.

Fake emails appearing to be from companies like UPS or PayPal will offer a link they claim is needed to correct a package delivery or payment error, only to gain access to the user's banking information on their phone or computer.

Jane Margesson, communications director for AARP Maine, said if people believe their personal data has been compromised, they should put a freeze on their credit report.

"It's the best proactive step you can take and will greatly minimize the damage from the theft of other personal information," Margesson explained.

Margesson advised not to click any links before checking with the company itself. She emphasized scammers are relentless, so it is important to remain alert. A recent AARP survey found more than 80% of Americans have experienced or been targeted by at least one form of holiday-related fraud.

Police departments across the state are also warning people to be on the lookout for so-called "brushing" scams, when an unexpected package shows up from Amazon with a fake QR code, which allows access to the recipient's phone and any information on it when scanned.

Margesson noted scammers are also tampering with popular gift cards found on store kiosks or online.

"The scammer may already have a record of it and once you load it up with the cash through the cashier, they can just spend it," Margesson outlined. "Before you even give it to the person intended, the money may already be gone."

Margesson stressed anyone looking to donate to a charity this holiday season should check first with the IRS or Charity Navigator online to ensure it's a registered 501(c)3 organization. She added scammers are developing increasingly sophisticated methods and there is no shame in falling for their tricks.

She recommended anyone who believes they have been targeted to contact the AARP Fraud Watch Network.