As Afghanistan Contracting Surges, Who's Following the Money?

As Afghan Contracting Surges, Who's Following the Money?

In the past eight years, the United States has allocated $51 billion to rebuild and stabilize Afghanistan. But tracking that money sometimes seems as challenging as finding the leaders of the Taliban. Read more...

Profiting From Recession, Payday Lenders Spend Big to Fight Regulation

Profiting From Recession, Payday Lenders Spend Big to Fight Regulation

The influential $42 billion-a-year payday lending industry, thriving from a surge in emergency loans to people struggling through the recession, is pouring record sums into lobbying, campaign contributions, and public relations – and getting results. Read more...

HARD TIMES PROFITEERS: Help Us Investigate 'Signs of Deception'

HARD TIMES PROFITEERS: Help Us Investigate 'Signs of Deception'

Drive through most any city in America and the offers will leap out at you: "Repair Your Credit!" "Sell Your House Quick!" They are signs of this recession, posted by Hard Times Profiteers seeking to capitalize on the financial misfortune of others, and we need your help documenting them.

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FDIC Chief Got Bank of America Loans While Working On Its Rescue

FDIC Chief Got Bank of America Loans While Working On Its Rescue

Sheila Bair, one of the chief regulators overseeing Bank of America’s federal rescue, took out two mortgages worth more than $1 million from the banking giant last summer during ongoing negotiations about the bank’s bailout and its repayment. Read more...

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FDA Asks Hospitals to Report Safety Glitches in Digital Health Systems

Concern over safety risks posed by health information technology has led the Food and Drug Administration to step up scrutiny of the products, including digital medical records systems on which...

By Fred Schulte and Emma Schwartz
11 March 2010

Another Wall Street Bonus Tax Falters in Congress

Few topics have generated as much political heat between Main Street and Wall Street as the billions of dollars in bonuses handed out at financial companies that received federal bailouts. But Washington’s efforts to claim some of that money for taxpayers continue to falter.

By Ben Protess9 March 2010

Cities Sue Manufacturer of Weed-Killer Found in Tap Water

A coalition of communities in six Midwestern states filed a federal lawsuit Monday seeking to force the manufacturer of a widely-used herbicide to pay for its removal from...

By Danielle Ivory8 March 2010

Stimulus To Push Electronic Health Records Could Widen 'Digital Divide'

A year after Congress agreed to spend billions of dollars to encourage a national switch to electronic health records, many doctors and hospitals have grown skeptical of the pace and details of...

By Fred Schulte8 March 2010

Experts: Safety Oversight Needed as Patient Records Go Digital

Though electronic health records may greatly improve medical care in the future, the technology poses a host of safety concerns that demand attention to protect patients from harm, witnesses told...

By Fred Schulte and Emma Schwartz
25 February 2010

VIDEO: FTC Consumer Chief To Fraudsters: 'I Want to Put You in Jail'

As many Americans spiraled deeper into financial disrepair last year, a record number of consumers fell victim to companies seeking to profit from their misfortune, according to the...

By Lagan Sebert and Ben Protess
24 February 2010

Consumer Complaints Soar on Mortgage 'Rescue' Schemes

As many Americans sank deeper into financial trouble last year, a record number reported that they fell victim to schemes seeking to profit from their misfortune, according to a federal report...

By Ben Protess and Lagan Sebert
24 February 2010

FDA Considers Regulating Safety of Electronic Health Systems

Concerned about potential safety risks in health information technology, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration may be moving closer to regulating the systems for the first time. 

In...

By Fred Schulte and Emma Schwartz
23 February 2010

Military Training of Afghan National Police Mired in Contract Dispute

As the war in Afghanistan intensifies, a contract dispute in Washington is interfering with the Obama administration's plan to rebuild the Afghan national police into a military force with skills to fight the Taliban.

By Christine Spolar22 February 2010

VIDEO: Senate Deal on Consumer Agency in Doubt

Has President Obama’s plan to create a new consumer financial protection agency died on Capitol Hill? That may turn on whether two key senators can make a deal.

Over the last several months...

By Ben Protess and Danielle Ivory
3 February 2010

Shopping for Health Software, Some Doctors Get Buyer’s Remorse

Robert Cameron wasn’t much of a technology buff, but the orthopedic surgeon knew he wanted to get rid of all the paper in his nine-physician practice in Pensacola, Fla. So he bought an electronic...

By Emma Schwartz29 January 2010

As Health Files Go Digital, Patients May Spot Unpleasant Surprises

As patients begin to assert control over records that thus far have remained almost exclusively in the custody of medical providers, many issues remain to be resolved.

By Fred Schulte26 January 2010

Flaws in Iraqi Police Contract Raise Questions About Afghan Effort

An inspector general's report on Iraqi reconstruction efforts has found major flaws in the State Department’s oversight of a $2.5 billion contract to help build Iraq’s police force.

By Christine Spolar25 January 2010

Electronic Health Records Probe Expands to Hospitals

A congressional inquiry into plans for spending billions of dollars in stimulus money on digital medical records is now questioning some of the nation’s most prestigious health care providers about possible safety flaws and other problems with the electronic systems.

By Fred Schulte and Emma Schwartz
20 January 2010

What's Still Hidden in AIG's Files?

As federal hearings into the cause of the financial crisis got underway this week, attention has focused on one key outstanding question: Whether the giant insurer American International Group...

By Ben Protess15 January 2010

Some Nonprofit Student Lenders Accused of Misconduct

As the cost of college continues to skyrocket, students are increasingly seeking loans from nonprofits—state-based organizations often viewed as an attractive alternative to for-profit lenders...

By The Investigative...7 January 2010

How Nonprofits Won Special Treatment in Student Lending Bill

When President Obama unveiled his plan to overhaul the student loan industry, many nonprofit lenders feared their business was doomed. But now those nonprofits – including some accused of previous misconduct -- are on the verge of winning a protected position in the higher-education business.

By The Investigative...7 January 2010

VIDEO: Barney Frank: Consumer Reforms at Risk in Senate

Financial reform legislation faces an uncertain future in the Senate where Republicans stand opposed to creating a new consumer protection agency. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), who ushered a...

By Lagan Sebert and Ben Protess
7 January 2010

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