Latest Illinois Headlines

All the headlines from our Illinois Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Declarations

Sep 25 2006 // Skip Free Advice “Seniors should be wary of unsolicited offers of free advice, especially if they are asked to divulge personal financial information, such as listing their income and assets.” Comment made by...

Declarations

Sep 25 2006 // Skip Free Advice “Seniors should be wary of unsolicited offers of free advice, especially if they are asked to divulge personal financial information, such as listing their income and assets.” Comment made by...

Ill. Comptroller Offers Bleak Look at State Budget Picture

Sep 21 2006 // Paying increased costs for employee pensions, health care for the poor and debt service will eat up virtually all new money the state can expect to bring in over the next three years, Comptroller Dan Hynes said Monday. The...

Courts Says Ill. Independent Candidates Face Toughest Hurdles in U.S.

Sep 20 2006 // A federal appeals court declared Monday that the unusually high hurdles independent candidates for the Illinois legislature must clear to get their names on the ballot are unconstitutional. “They are the most...

Ill. Couple Videotape Themselves Committing Insurance Fraud

Sep 20 2006 // A Union County, Ill. couple’s plan to crash a van into a tree and collect the insurance money was caught on a tape they created–unbelievable as it seems. The plan of action was to smash Robert and Teresa...

Ill. Assurance Agency Is Sponsor for 2006 Business Association Expo

Sep 6 2006 // Assurance Agency Ltd., headquartered in Schaumburg, Ill., will be the presenting sponsor at the Schaumburg Business Association Expo held at the Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel and Convention Center on Tuesday, Sept. 19,...

Avreco Announces Ill. Malpractice Carrier Reduces Rates by 25 Percent

Sep 6 2006 // Ill.-based wholesaler Avreco has announced that one of its carriers has significantly reduced its medical malpractice rates for standard doctors, as well hard-to-place doctors within Illinois and outside of Cook County, by...

It Figures

Sep 4 2006 // 1 million Enrollment in insured HMO benefit plans declined again in 2005, dropping below 1 million, the lowest level since 1985. Premium revenue increases slowed and profitability for HMOs decreased from its peak in 2004....

WORKER’S COMP FRAUD $300 BILLION NATIONAL PROBLEM

Sep 4 2006 // The Illinois State Insurance Department receives reports of six alleged cases of workers’ compensation insurance fraud each week, according to Director Michael McRaith. Some reports accuse employers of fraudulently...

Ill. A.G. Sues Companies for Deceptive Mailers for Annuity Sales to Seniors

Sep 1 2006 // Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced her office filed two lawsuits against companies that allegedly used deceptive, unsolicited mailers to target senior citizens. The companies used the mailers to obtain...

Ill. Native Recipient of Life Industry’s John Newton Russel Memorial Award

Aug 31 2006 // James M. Benson, CLU, a successful producer and executive of some of the top companies in the life insurance industry, was named recipient of the 65th annual John Newton Russell Memorial Award. The award recognizes...

Ill. Consumers File Fewer Complaints Against Insurers in 2005

Aug 30 2006 // Illinois consumers filed fewer complaints regarding their insurance companies and HMOs in 2005, according to consumer complaint statistics released recently by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional...

Ill. Fundraiser Gets $900,000 No-bid State Contract as Special Examiner

Aug 30 2006 // A prominent Democratic fundraiser for Gov. Rod Blagojevich was awarded a $900,000 no-bid state contract months after being cut from an investment proposal that has drawn scrutiny from federal investigators, according to a...

Ill. Arthur J. Gallagher Board Chairman Dies after Brief Illness

Aug 30 2006 // Itasca, Ill-.based Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. reported today that Robert E. (Bob) Gallagher, chairman of the Board, has passed away following a brief illness. “My uncle Bob was a true leader and an inspiration...

Fla. Police Seek Stores, Bars Selling Liquor to Teens

Aug 29 2006 // There’s one in every town — a convenience store where IDs aren’t necessary, or a low-lit bar whose servers never bother to ask. In Jacksonville, Florida officials say, that bar was Rockets, where Stephanie...

Fewer Arsons, Rapes and Thefts Help Lower Illinois Crime Rate in 2005

Aug 28 2006 // Fewer thefts, arsons and rapes here helped bring Illinois’ crime rate down in 2005, but a majority of the state’s communities reported a rise in serious crime, according to Illinois State Police data. Law...

FEMA Denies Ill. Aid to for Last Month’s Severe Weather

Aug 25 2006 // Illinois’ damage from last month’s severe weather wasn’t enough to get millions of dollars in financial help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the agency has told Gov. Rod Blagojevich and the...

Illinois doctor disciplinary agency criticized

Aug 21 2006 // Auditors examining the Illinois agency that disciplines bad doctors found a long list of troubling symptoms, including backlogs, staff shortages, missing paperwork and investigations being improperly closed. The report...

AAA Chicago’s August Fuel Report Shows Gas Prices Remain High in Ill.

Aug 18 2006 // Statewide averages for the price of gasoline in Illinois and northern Indiana have increased since last month. AAA Chicago’s most recent Fuel Gauge Report estimates that in Illinois regular unleaded gasoline has...

Two Dead, One Missing in Ill. in Attempt to Save Boy from Drowning

Aug 15 2006 // Two people died and a third was missing and presumed drowned Sunday in an attempt to rescue a young boy from the swirling water near a dam on the Kankakee River in Wilmington, Ill. authorities said. Although Brian Santoyo,...