Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Drug Firms Must Face Trial Over Opioids, Judge Orders
Sep 4 2019 // A U.S. judge on Tuesday rejected efforts by major drugmakers, pharmacies and distributors to dismiss claims that they caused the nation’s opioid crisis, clearing the way for a scheduled landmark trial even as he...
McDonald’s Expands Training to Address Workplace Harassment, Violence Prevention
Sep 4 2019 // The world’s biggest restaurant company, facing complaints from employees and advocacy groups over workplace policies, said it is expanding its training program for restaurant supervisors and crew. McDonald’s...
States Questioning How Juul’s Vaping Device Became So Popular with Teens
Sep 4 2019 // E-cigarette giant Juul Labs is facing mounting scrutiny from state law enforcement officials, with the attorneys general in Illinois and the District of Columbia investigating how the company’s blockbuster vaping...
5G Mobile Networks Jeopardize Future Storm Forecasts, Claim Weather Agencies
Sep 4 2019 // Weather agencies are warning that signals from new 5G mobile networks will make it harder to predict and track deadly storms, as the fiercest hurricane in more than 80 years tore across the Bahamas to threaten the U.S....
U.S. Court Rules Airport Screeners Can Be Sued
Sep 3 2019 // A federal appeals court on Friday handed a victory to travelers who object to invasive screenings at U.S. airport security checkpoints, saying screeners are not absolutely immune from lawsuits accusing them of abusive...
In Suit, Indiana Family Says Juul E-Cigarettes Are Deliberately Highly Addictive
Sep 3 2019 // An Indiana family is suing Juul Labs Inc., accusing it of making electronic cigarettes that contain excessively high levels of nicotine without warning that they’re addictive. The McCullough family of Carmel filed...
Government Fails to Block Liability Lawsuit Over Failed Background Check on Shooter
Sep 3 2019 // A lawsuit over a faulty background check that allowed a South Carolina man to buy the gun he used to kill nine people in a racist attack at a Charleston church was reinstated Friday by a federal appeals court. A...
Category 5 Dorian Batters Bahamas; Florida, Southeast Coast Await Fate
Sep 2 2019 // Sept. 2, 2019, 7:12 AM EST— Hurricane Dorian, tied as the most powerful storm to hit land anywhere in the Atlantic, battered the Bahamas inflicting colossal damage to property and infrastructure across the chain of...
People & Places
Sep 2 2019 // National Reinsurance broker BMS Group has named Pete Chandler as president of its U.S. reinsurance operations. Chandler joins from JLT Re, where he was deputy CEO of the U.S. reinsurance broking arm of the group. He joined...
First-Half 2019 Records Drop in P/C Insurers’ Underwriting Income; Downgrades Outpace Upgrades: A.M. Best
Sep 2 2019 // The U.S. property/casualty industry’s net underwriting income declined by 9.6% to $4.8 billion in the first half of 2019, compared with $5.3 billion in the same prior-year period, A.M. Best reports. Also, ongoing...
Fake Claims, Price Gouging, Bogus Contractors in Times of Disaster
Sep 2 2019 // As the scale and frequency of major disasters escalate, millions of dollars in federal, state and insurance payments intended for recovery efforts are being stolen by fraudsters taking advantage of chaos and the pipeline...
U.S. Gulf Coast Refineries Keeping an Eye on Hurricane Dorian
Aug 30 2019 // Chevron Corp’s 356,440 barrel-per-day Pascagoula, Mississippi, refinery is closely monitoring the progress of Hurricane Dorian, a company spokesman said on Thursday. Dorian is churning across the Atlantic Ocean...
Texas Hospital Settles Pregnancy Discrimination Suit for $40K
Aug 30 2019 // San Antonio, Texas-based Nix Hospitals System LLC, doing business as Nix Healthcare System, has agreed to pay $40,000 to settle a federal pregnancy discrimination lawsuit. The lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment...
Automakers Call for Urgency in Advancing U.S. Rules for Self-Driving Vehicles
Aug 30 2019 // Waymo, the self-driving car unit of Google parent Alphabet Inc, on Thursday urged the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to “promptly” remove regulatory barriers for cars without steering...
New Specialty Broker McGill & Partners Forms U.S. Subsidiary
Aug 29 2019 // The new London-based insurance broker, McGill & Partners, is forming a Delaware-based subsidiary and is obtaining U.S. licenses to operate, the company’s founder Steve McGill has confirmed. When McGill &...
Purdue Pharma Floats $10-$12 Billion Opioid Settlement: Reuters
Aug 28 2019 // OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP and its owners, the Sackler family, are in discussion to settle more than 2,000 opioid lawsuits against the company for $10 billion to $12 billion, two people familiar with the matter said...
Tropical Storm Dorian to Drench Puerto Rico; Then Could Hit Florida as Hurricane
Aug 28 2019 // Tropical Storm Dorian is about to lash Puerto Rico with torrential rains, and then is expected to gain strength and become the first major hurricane to hit Florida’s east coast in 15 years. Chances are increasing...
Opioid Epidemic Could Threaten Europe Too: Viewpoint
Aug 28 2019 // As drugmakers are being held responsible for fueling the U.S. opioid epidemic, it might look at though they have nothing to fear in Europe, where, it’s often assumed, opioid misuse isn’t so rampant. The...
Update: Tropical Storm Dorian to Sideswipe Puerto Rico, but Heads to Florida
Aug 28 2019 // Tropical Storm Dorian is about to sideswipe Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. And if you live on Florida’s east coast, it may be time to start gathering supplies. Chances are increasing that the storm will...
Burger King Franchise in Oklahoma to Pay $30K to Settle Disability Discrimination Suit
Aug 28 2019 // The operators of a Lawton, Okla., Burger King restaurant have agreed to pay $30,000 and furnish other relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit brought by federal officials. In a lawsuit filed in July 2018, the...
