Articles by Emery P. Dalesio

North Carolina Regulator Calls for Hearing, Delay on Home Insurance Rates

Two weeks ahead of an election deciding whether he keeps his job, North Carolina’s insurance commissioner told companies they’ll have to prove they should be allowed to increase homeowner’s premiums by a statewide average of 17.7 percent. The move by …

Directors Cite Insurance Questions in Ouster of North Carolina’s Duke Energy CEO

A long-time Duke Energy Corp. director who led the surprise CEO ouster at the country’s largest electric company said Friday that reasons for the move included a long-delayed update on insurance payments for a troubled Florida nuclear power plant and …

Blue Cross Fights North Carolina Claim It Blocks Competition

North Carolina’s Blue Cross plan and the national Blue Cross licensing organization asked a federal court to reject a lawsuit claiming the company’s network of insurance plans across the country are limiting competition. The lawsuit contends the practice that bars …

North Carolina Court Weighs If Municipalities Charging Fees Forfeit Immunity

At a time when businesses have taken on traditional government tasks, from running schools to space launches, North Carolina’s Supreme Court is being asked to decide what tasks a municipality can perform and still remain protected from lawsuits. The court …

North Carolina Wins Delay on Medical Loss Ratio

Federal regulators last week allowed North Carolina insurers a one-year delay in meeting a benchmark requiring that more of each health insurance premium dollar to go toward medical services and less toward overhead and bonuses. The decision by the U.S. …

North Carolina Supreme Court Weighs ‘Reasonableness’ of Hospital Bills

North Carolina’s Supreme Court heard attorneys argue Monday whether consumers should be able to take hospitals to court to justify bills that seem excessive. The high court took up the case of Robert Talford, 68, of Charlotte, who represented himself …

North Carolina Insurers Still Hoping for Medical Loss Ratio Waiver

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is going overtime as it decides whether to stick with federal standards that could mean $12 million in rebates for more than 58,000 North Carolina residents who buy their own health insurance. …

North Carolina Homes Rebuilt After Twisters

The relief organization Samaritan’s Purse last Friday turned over the keys of two homes rebuilt by volunteers eight months after they were destroyed by deadly tornadoes in Bertie County. Lucy “Pearl” Clemons, 72, had nothing more than a plastic patio …

North Carolina House Joins Senate to Override Veto of Malpractice Cap

Victims of North Carolina doctors guilty of medical malpractice will be limited to $500,000 what they can collect for pain, suffering and lost body parts under legislation the state House passed into law over a veto by Gov. Beverly Perdue. …

North Carolina House Backs Liability Protections for Drug Makers

The North Carolina House has voted to give pharmaceutical companies sweeping product liability protections as part of a larger Republican effort to limit liability for North Carolina businesses. The proposed legislation that passed the House 86-32 would grant drug companies …