Alison Young Investigates

Rats in Atlanta invade attics, tunnel under homes

Synopsis: Roof rats and Norway rats live in Atlanta and some exterminators say complaints are on the rise. But Fulton and DeKalb county health officials are receiving fewer complaints, according to documents obtained under the Georgia Open Records act and interviews. This article details the health risks posed by rats and reveals what experts say is a lack of awareness by government and medical officials. Rat complaints in Atlanta

What to do when your mortgage company closes

Synopsis: In the wake of the closing of Sunshine Mortgage, a major Atlanta lender, this article gives consumers tips for how to handle payments, answers questions about whether their escrows are at risk and reveals some of the problems that can occur when loans are shifted from one company to another. Lenders' closings open up troubles

Is a home warranty worth the money?

Synopsis: Many real estate agents and homeowners praise the value of home warranties, others complain they've had difficulty getting legitimate claims paid or that they've been price-gouged by uncovered items in their contracts' fine print. What explains these very different views? This article examines home warranties and gives tips for consumers to protect themselves: Give warranty covering home a careful look

Obama ousts controversial CDC director

Synopsis: CDC Director Julie Gerberberding has resigned as director of the Atlanta-based agency. CDC director Gerberding resigns at Obama's request

Surprising risks of quinolone antibiotics

Synopsis: If you've been prescribed an antibiotic in the last few years it likely was Levaquin, Cipro or one of the other drugs in the fluoroquinolone family. But were you warned about the risks of your tendons rupturing? This article describes how the FDA has received thousands of reports of tendon side effects, yet many doctors have been unaware of the risk and drug makers only recently started sending letters warning them. The tendon problems are only one of the drugs' risks, the article reveals. Antibiotics' dangers not widely known