Last winter was one of the harshest, hitting millions of Americans with spikes in their winter utility bills. Unfortunately, here we are, one year later, facing yet another polar vortex. Meteorologists predict some of the coldest blasts of frigid temperatures over the next several days, which has energy experts worried about the impact on consumers’ utility bills, as well as on the reliability of the electric grid we all depend on.
As Polar Vortex 2015 moves across the country, consumers could face spikes in electricity bills, with seniors on fixed incomes and lower income Americans hit the hardest. According to a recent survey, high energy prices already have forced more than 40 percent of low-income seniors to go without needed medical or dental care, and even to skip meals or shut off the heat on cold days.
It may seem odd to be predicting another energy price spike since oil, natural gas and coal prices have all fallen recently. But it’s not the market that will be driving prices higher. It’s politics.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7221731-national-mining-association-americans-electricity-bill-increase-due-to-epa-regulations/
Concur, the world’s leading provider of integrated travel and expense management solutions and services, today announced partnerships with Lyft and HotelTonight. These partnerships continue the company’s commitment to meet modern business travelers’ needs for on-demand services, while also providing finance and travel managers greater visibility and manageability for business expenses.
A 2015 survey of travel managers found that more than 50 percent say the booming on-demand and sharing economies are a top trend impacting travel programs. Supporting this observation, Concur saw a 7x increase in amount of spend by Concur customers expensing Lyft. Also, data from HotelTonight shows that more than 40 percent of people who book with the app have used it for business travel.
To view the multimedia news release visit
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7203652-concur-lyft-hoteltonight-partnership/
T. Rowe Price has launched Star Banks Adventure, an online game and mobile app, as a fun way for kids to learn financial concepts that will help them manage money in the future. Our 2015 Parents, Kids & Money Survey found that three-quarters of parents and kids think that game apps are a good way to teach kids about financial matters. Star Banks Adventure, now available for download on iOS and Android devices and online at starbanksadventure.com, is designed with a tile-matching concept to reinforce financial education topics and engage kids in an epic adventure to save the galaxy from financial chaos.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to: http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7455231-t-rowe-price-financial-education
Most Americans appear hopeful and optimistic about aging according to a new, national study from Parker, one of America’s leading aging services organizations that this year celebrates its 110th anniversary. Key findings from Parker’s “Aging in America Survey”—which examines the nation’s changing attitudes and opinions around growing older in the U.S.—include:
• A vast majority of Americans (71%) do not fear or worry about aging very much or at all.
• More than half of those surveyed (62%) believe that 80 is not too old to serve in government, run a marathon, be CEO of a Fortune 500 company, teach a class, or practice yoga.
• Those surveyed were evenly split (49% each) in describing the experience of growing older in America today with positive words (e.g., “hopeful,” “relevant,” “vibrant”) vs. negative words (e.g., “scary,” “depressing,” “lonely”).
• Nearly two-thirds (59%) of Americans feel that not enough technology innovation focuses on the lifestyles of older people.
• While 38% of Americans feel the most positive thing about getting older is gaining more experience and wisdom, only 1% believes it is acquiring greater wealth and material goods.
To view the multimedia release go to:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8100251-parker-aging-in-america-survey-anniversary/
An international survey conducted by GSK and released for World Meningitis Day shows gaps in the knowledge parents feel they have about meningococcal disease and its potential consequences. Almost 7 in 10 parents said they don’t know enough about the different strains of meningococcal disease and the potential damage they can cause. On average, more than half of parents were either unsure or unaware that there are different types of bacteria that cause the disease.
The survey of 5,000 parents in Brazil, Canada, Germany, Italy and Portugal also shows that out of a list of 14 vaccine-preventable diseases, meningococcal disease is considered by many parents to pose a top three health risk to their children. Fifty-seven percent listed meningococcal disease among the top three health conditions they considered of greatest risk to children followed by Hepatitis B at 34 percent, pneumococcal disease at 27 percent, polio at 25 percent, tetanus at 20 percent and pertussis at 17 percent.
A sudden, potentially life-threatening illness, meningococcal disease kills on average one person every eight minutes worldwide. It typically manifests as bacterial meningitis – an infection of the membrane around the brain and spine; or bacteraemia – a bloodstream infection. The disease progresses rapidly and it can lead to death within 24-48 hours of the first symptoms; globally up to 1 in 10 of those infected may die and in the US about 10-15 percent of people will die.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/uk/7814851-gsk-survey-world-meningitis-day/
T. Rowe Price’s 2014 Parents, Kids & Money Survey revealed that parents’ behaviors are often at odds with their concerns about setting a good financial example for their kids.
T. Rowe Price encourages parents to invest in their kids’ futures by talking to them about money matters weekly. To help, the firm created MoneyConfidentKids.com.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/65887-money-confident-kids-presented-by-t-rowe-price/
New survey results from Connections Academy, http://www.connectionsacademy.com, one of the country’s leading providers of full-time online school for students in grades K through 12, reveals the reasons parents enroll their children in online schools. The results are from the Connections Academy 2014 Parent Satisfaction Survey, an annual third-party survey now in its twelfth year. All families with students enrolled at the time of the survey were invited to participate – 45% of the families responded to the survey, totaling more than 18,000 respondents. The survey results suggest key explanations for the continuing growth of virtual schooling in the United States.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7067853-connections-academy-parent-survey-why-k-12-students-attend-online-schools-full-time/
Today the District of Columbia Department of Health (DOH) released a new report, “DC Takes On HIV: Public Awareness, Resident Engagement and a Call to Action,” which details the results of an extensive survey of residents’ awareness, knowledge, and behavior associated with the city’s five-year social marketing campaign for HIV prevention.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7379651-dc-department-of-health-study-shows-dc-takes-on-hiv-campaign-effective/
There's something about the road trip that really speaks to many Americans. It gives them the freedom to travel the country's highways and back roads to explore new places and familiar destinations. It allows them to taste local food and experience local culture–on their own timeline. And it's a cost-conscious way to have a truly memorable vacation.
It's only natural, then, that many people think road trips are the best way to travel. A brand-new survey from AARP Travel (http://travel.aarp.org), a valuable resource for America's 76 million baby boomers who spend over $120 billion annually in leisure travel, finds that more than 7 in 10 people 45-plus say that road trips are their favorite way to travel.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7488431-aarp-travel/
International Connections Academy, an accredited online private school for students in grades K-12, is making it easier for families moving or currently living abroad to transition their children to school anywhere in the world through its new online education resource for expat families.
International Connections Academy currently serves students in more than 40 countries across the globe – with the number of expat families it serves growing each semester. The school’s 2016 Parent Satisfaction Survey recently revealed that 80 percent of currently enrolled families living abroad moved for business purposes, with two-thirds planning on living in their new country for at least four years.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7654354-international-connections-academy-education-abroad/
WebMD and Scripps Translational Science Institute (STSI) today announced a new investigative study designed to improve researchers’ and health care professionals’ understanding of what contributes to healthy pregnancies and positive pregnancy outcomes. The Healthy Pregnancy Study will use WebMD’s newly redesigned and enhanced Pregnancy app for iPhone. Incorporation of the Apple ResearchKit software framework will enable survey participants to eConsent, easily and anonymously answer questions, and share connected device data about their pregnancies with researchers for analysis.
“Pregnant women are one of the least studied populations in medical research,” said Dr. Eric Topol, director of STSI and editor-in-chief of Medscape. “The results of our Healthy Pregnancy Study -- on the foundation of an exceptionally popular smartphone app -- will ultimately provide expectant mothers, researchers, and health care professionals with new medical insights to avoid complications during pregnancy.”
To view the multimedia release go to:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/7579757-webmd-stsi-healthy-pregnancy-study-app/
Blood cancers are the third leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. However, many Americans are unaware of the impact of these cancers, including leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma, which affect the bone marrow, the blood cells, the lymph nodes and other parts of the lymphatic system.
A new survey commissioned by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) reveals more than four in five adults (82%) are surprised that blood cancers are the third leading cancer killer of Americans. Further, nearly four in five adults (78%) are surprised that acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) is the most common cancer in children and young adults under age 20.
To view the multimedia release go to:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8128551-lls-blood-cancer-awareness-month/
