Latest COVID-19 Headlines
All the headlines from our COVID-19 Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Smithfield’s South Dakota Pork Plant Closed After 100s Test Positive for Virus
Apr 14 2020 // Virginia-based Smithfield Foods announced Sunday that it is closing its pork processing plant in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, until further notice after hundreds of employees tested positive for the coronavirus — a step...
Trump Tells Insurers to Pay Virus Claims If Pandemics Not Excluded
Apr 14 2020 // President Donald Trump has staked out his position in a legal battle over business-interruption claims: Unless the policy excludes pandemics, insurers should pay. Trump spoke about the issue for a minute and a half during...
What if California Faces a Disaster During The Pandemic?
Apr 14 2020 // California has evacuation plans for earthquakes, floods, mudslides and, of course, wildfires, but what if one of those disasters occurs as the state is dealing with the coronavirus outbreak when everyone is being urged to...
Suddenly There Is Big Demand for Pandemic Cover, Says Underwriter
Apr 14 2020 // In the midst of this pandemic, insurance buyers and their brokers are looking for COVID-19 pandemic coverage, which is like buying property insurance when your house is on fire, according to Tracey Gibbons, senior vice...
Officials: Health Care Workers Account for 15% of Alabama Virus Cases
Apr 14 2020 // More than 450 health care workers in Alabama had been infected with COVID-19 as the total cases in the state neared 3,000, the Alabama Department of Public Health said Friday. The Alabama Department of Public Health said...
Mississippi Doctor Claims Voicing Virus Concerns Led to Firing in Lawsuit
Apr 14 2020 // A Mississippi doctor who was fired after raising concerns about her hospital’s safety measures in the coronavirus pandemic is now suing. News outlets reported Dr. Samantha Houston was fired from Oxford’s...
Warehouse Workers Risk COVID-19 Shipping Knick-Knacks, Luxury Goods
Apr 14 2020 // As U.S. authorities ordered shutdowns of non-essential businesses to fight coronavirus, retailer Nordstrom Inc. closed hundreds of stores and gave in-store workers three weeks’ pay, calling their safety its top...
California State Fund Pledging $50M for Essential Workers During COVID-19 Crisis
Apr 13 2020 // California’s State Compensation Insurance Fund announced on Monday that it will establish two new funds to support the health and recovery of essential workers and workplace safety during the COVID-19 crisis. The...
More Coronavirus Deaths Spur New North Carolina Nursing Home Directives
Apr 13 2020 // North Carolina health officials ordered new resident and employee protections in the state’s nursing homes and similar settings last week after the new coronavirus further penetrated those facilities, leading to more...
Wimbledon Shows How Pandemic Insurance Could Become Vital for Sports, Other Events
Apr 13 2020 // The Wimbledon tennis tournament had the foresight to buy around £1.5 million (US$1.9 million) per year in pandemic insurance following the SARS outbreak in 2003, said GlobalData in a recent bulletin. Paying out roughly...
Arizona Dispensary Ordered to Stop Selling Virus ‘Stabilizer’
Apr 13 2020 // Arizona’s top prosecutor has ordered a Phoenix, Ariz., dispensary to stop marketing its products as treatments for the coronavirus. Attorney General Mark Brnovich says he sent a cease-and-desist letter to YiLo...
Washington Nursing Home Sued Over Coronavirus Death
Apr 13 2020 // The daughter of a woman who died of a suspected coronavirus case at a Seattle-area nursing home connected to dozens of COVID-19 deaths is suing the company that owns the Life Care Center of Kirkland. The Life Care Center...
P/C Insurance Is Industry Least Likely to Default Due to Coronavirus: S&P Credit Analysis
Apr 13 2020 // Compared to others, the property/casualty insurance industry is weathering the coronavirus crisis rather well. The property/casualty insurance is the least-impacted industry by the coronavirus pandemic, at least so far,...
New Jersey Directs Insurers to Provide Emergency Grace Period Amid COVID-19
Apr 13 2020 // The New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance has directed insurers to provide financial relief to residents and businesses, as they continue to suffer financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The guidance...
California Orders Insurers to Refund Premiums to Drivers, Businesses Hit by COVID-19
Apr 13 2020 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Monday ordered insurance companies to return insurance premiums to consumers and businesses and provide financial relief during the COVID-19 emergency. The...
How P/C Insurance Industry Can Maximize Its Response to Coronavirus: Crisis Manager
Apr 13 2020 // “I’m shocked, just shocked that you’re suggesting that during a crisis that insurance companies might in fact be considered the villains. I’ve never heard that before.” That’s Richard...
Auto Insurers Offering $8-$10B in Discounts in Coronavirus Relief Effort; Updated List
Apr 13 2020 // The group of property/casualty insurers offering auto insurance premium discounts to recognize that insureds are driving less during the coronavirus crisis continues to grow, and now includes all major auto insurers. State...
Quote Requests to Insurance Agencies Down 30% Since Coronavirus Shutdowns
Apr 13 2020 // While consumers may have more time to consider their insurance needs during this period of stay at home orders and non-essential business shutdowns brought on by the nationwide COVID-19 pandemic, they aren’t...
Eli Lilly Begins Clinical Trial for COVID-19 Therapies
Apr 12 2020 // Eli Lilly and Co. reports it has begun clinical trials for testing therapies for COVID-19. The drug company said it has entered into an agreement with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part...
Does Prop 103 Allow Auto Insurers to Provide COVID-19 Rebates? Maybe Not
Apr 9 2020 // As is by now obvious to everyone, Americans are driving less these days amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Across the country, schools and businesses are shut down. Many areas have curfews and stay-at-home orders that ask...
