N.Y., N.J. AGENTS FIGHT DMV INSERTS

The Professional Insurance Agents of New York State Inc. has been arguing for years that it is improper for the New York Department of Motor Vehicles to include ads from automobile insurers, such as GEICO, when it mails out drivers' auto registration renewals.

Now, PIA of New Jersey agents are also trying to counter their turnpike authority's including GEICO advertisements with E-ZPass mailings.

"When a government agency sends out official documents with advertisements, it could be perceived as an endorsement of the advertiser's products, which is wrong," said J. Carlos Viana, president of PIANY.

Agents are making some progress. Lawmakers in both states have introduced bills to ban ads directly related to a state agency's regulatory authority.

VIRGINIA TARGETS DOGS, UNDERAGE DRINKING

Owners of dangerous dogs face tougher penalties and adults who serve booze to underage guests are targeted under new state laws that took effect July 1 in Virginia.

The dog-mauling death of 82-year-old widow Dorothy Sullivan prompted one of the session's most high-profile initiatives, legislation imposing tough penalties on the owners of dogs that seriously injure others. Lawmakers approved legislation to make a felony certain dog attacks that result in serious injury, punishable by up to five years in prison and a $2,500 fine.

Also starting July, it became illegal for Virginians to serve alcoholic beverages to guests under age 21 unless those guests are accompanied by a parent, guardian or spouse 21 or older. Previously, there was no law specifically prohibiting residents from serving alcohol to teenage guests in private homes.

"This needed, new law not only closes a loophole in Virginia law but also, hopefully, the door to the high school graduation kegger," said Kurt Gregory Erickson, president of the McLean-based Washington Regional Alcohol Program.

States reject pharma laws
New York, Rhode Island and Delaware are the latest states to reject pharmacy benefit manager fiduciary and disclosure laws in 2006. According to the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, 20 states have rejected bills in the first six months of the year.

Two bills -- in Maine and the District of Columbia -- have been enacted since 2003. However, the District of Columbia law has been blocked from taking effect by the U.S. District Court and is currently being litigated.

SWISS RE ANNOUNCES FIRST GE LAYOFFS

Swiss Re, the world's biggest reinsurer since it completed the acquisition of GE Insurance Solutions, has lost no time in reducing its workforce. In a move it characterized as a "process to capture efficiency gains," the company announced that it has "reduced in excess of 250 positions, particularly at management level."

The job reductions constitute the "first phase" of a two step plan. In the second phase, to be completed over the next four months, Swiss Re said it would "finalize the composition of its operating units worldwide, leading to an overall workforce reduction of up to 2,000 positions." It plans to complete the process by the end of 2007.

Swiss Re said it "will achieve the job reductions through a mix of lay-offs and natural attrition." Large office locations including Zurich, London, Armonk, Kansas City and Munich will be most affected. Swiss Re said it is committed to providing all employees with "appropriate separation packages including professional career support."

MERCK WINS NEW JERSEY VIOXX CASE

A New Jersey jury found in favor of Merck & Co. Inc. earlier this month, rejecting the claims of a patient who blamed her heart attack on nearly three years of Vioxx use.

The jury found that Merck acted responsibly in informing the medical community about the benefits and risks of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved medicine.

"The company acted responsibly, the science was on our side, and the jury agreed," said Jim Fitzpatrick of Hughes Hubbard & Reed, a member of Merck's defense team in Doherty v. Merck. "Mrs. Doherty would have suffered a heart attack whether she was taking Vioxx or not. Before ever hearing of Vioxx, Mrs. Doherty had multiple risk factors for heart disease, including high cholesterol, diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity."

The verdict marks the third time in four cases that a New Jersey jury found in Merck's favor on a plaintiff's product liability claim.

The jury also found in Merck's favor on the plaintiff's consumer statute claim, specifically finding that Merck did not mislead consumers in its marketing efforts.

Elaine Doherty, a homemaker from Lawrenceville, N.J., alleged that she took 25 mg of Vioxx daily from June 28, 2001, until she suffered a heart attack on Jan. 19, 2004, at age 65. She continued to take the medicine until Merck withdrew it from the market in September 2004.

This is the seventh case that has gone to trial. An eighth case is currently under way in Los Angeles.