Opponents counter that the push for AB 2800 exaggerates insurers' woes and piggybacks onto environmental activism to achieve corporate gain. "I think there's always sort of a credibility gap between the industry's claims and its actual performance," said Richard Holober of the CFC.

"This is a victory for California consumers," said Zack Kaldveer of CFC. "It's also a victory for our state's Constitution, which explicitly protects the individual's right to privacy. When it comes to medical prescriptions, there is nothing more private. This bill crossed the line."

A California lawmaker has joined the chorus of voices urging Google Inc. to include a link to its privacy policy on the home page of its Web site, as required by state law.

"We see these fees as bad for passengers and bad for workers," said Zack Kaldveer, a spokesman for CFC. "(this is)...another example of airlines nickeling and diming passengers, while also taking money out of the pockets of some of their lowest-paid workers."

"This is an outrageous giveaway to companies like Chevron and Exxon Mobil," said Richard Holober, Executive Director of the CFC. “Why shouldn’t these companies continue to pay their fair share for programs that assist low-income Californians?"

“California consumers and the right to privacy explicit in our State Constitution lost and big business won today," said Zack Kaldveer, spokesperson for CFC. "Under this bill, an individual’s private medical prescriptions become commodities to be marketed and sold for the purpose of increasing corporate profit, not improving public health."

"This attempt by the utilities to help big businesses avoid paying their fair share for a critical program like CARE is unconscionable at a time when energy costs continue to skyrocket," said Richard Holober, Executive Director of the CFC.

The Consumer Federation of California opposed SB 1096 (Calderon) because it raised significant privacy and health care concerns for patients.

With customer service declining and the number of airline passengers rising, more and more passengers are ending up suffering with lengthy flight delays, canceled flights and on occasion finding themselves trapped in airplanes for interminable hours before taking off.

As California's foreclosure crisis continues unabated and families are being ousted from their homes at an unprecedented pace, the state legislature is finally taking action.

The measure fails to address skyrocketing health insurance premium costs. During the years 2000 - 2005, health insurance premiums escalated by 87 percent, which is over four times the rate of inflation.