Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
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...
Auto Safety Test Pits Traditional Car Mirrors v. Rear/Side Cameras
Aug 28 2019 // The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration plans to test how drivers could use cameras to replace traditional rearview mirrors in automobiles, a technology already allowed in other countries, the agency said...
Hiscox Names O’Hara U.S. Southwest Regional Executive
Aug 27 2019 // Hiscox has named Landon O’Hara Southwest regional executive in the US. O’Hara will be based in Los Angeles an oversee the Southwest region underwriting team at Hiscox. O’Hara will serve as a member of the...
Fargo Appointed Chairman of USAA in San Antonio
Aug 27 2019 // Retired U.S. Navy Adm. Thomas B. Fargo has been named chairman of San Antonio-based USAA. Adm. Fargo is the financial services and insurance group’s 22nd chairman. He succeeds retired U.S. Air Force Gen. Lester L....
Chronic Commercial Auto Insurance Underwriting Losses to Continue in 2019: Fitch
Aug 27 2019 // U.S. property/casualty insurers continue to face substantial underwriting losses on commercial automobile insurance and, following a statutory combined ratio of 108% in 2018, the segment is poised for a ninth consecutive...
Other Opioid Lawsuit Plaintiffs Welcome Oklahoma Ruling Affirming Public Nuisance
Aug 27 2019 // While some Johnson & Johnson investors were relieved that the company’s $572 million penalty for fueling Oklahoma’s opioid epidemic wasn’t as high as feared, lawyers for other U.S. states, cities and...
Why Are Amazon Fires Potentially Sparking Global Climate Crisis?
Aug 26 2019 // A record number of fires ravaging the Amazon has drawn international outrage because of the rainforest’s importance to the global environment and prompted Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to dispatch the military...
Update: Tropical Storm Dorian Strengthens as It Heads Toward Barbados
Aug 26 2019 // Tropical Storm Dorian is gaining strength as it approaches the Lesser Antilles and is forecast to skirt Puerto Rico as a weak hurricane. The storm was about 30 miles (50 kilometers) east-southeast of Barbados as of 8 p.m....
Prospect of Brexit Deal Is ‘Touch and Go,’ Acknowledges PM Johnson
Aug 26 2019 // U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson acknowledged Sunday that the prospect of a Brexit deal was “touch and go,” as other European Union capitals grasp the problems Britain has with the withdrawal...
P/C Insurers’ First-Half Underwriting Income Drops; Downgrades Outpace Upgrades: A.M. Best
Aug 26 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: How Fraudsters Steal Disaster Aid
Aug 23 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. Lawmakers Urge Regulators to Treat Cloud Services as Players in Financial System
Aug 23 2019 // Two U.S. lawmakers have called on a top financial regulatory panel to consider direct oversight of the cloud services big tech companies provide to banks, saying they have become a critical component of the global...
China Tops List of U.S. Cybersecurity Agency’s Top Risks
Aug 23 2019 // A newly created U.S. cybersecurity agency said Thursday that China represents the greatest strategic risk to the U.S., and as a result, the agency’s top operational priority is reducing the risks from Chinese...
For Many U.S. Communities, There’s No Easy Path to Safety From Disasters
Aug 23 2019 // As the country enters peak season for major natural disasters, new research indicates which states and communities are the riskiest for those needing to evacuate whether from wildfires or hurricanes. StreetLight Data Inc.,...
Retreat as an Answer to Climate Change?
Aug 22 2019 // Think retreat is never an option? Think again. “Faced with global warming, rising sea levels, and the climate-related extremes they intensify, the question is no longer whether some communities will retreat—moving...
Allstate CEO Calls On U.S. Corporations to Pay Employees More
Aug 22 2019 // U.S. businesses must focus on creating higher-paying jobs,Tom Wilson, Allstate chair, president and chief executive officer, writes in today’s New York Times. Wilson calls on America’s corporate leaders to...
With Economy Slowing, Tariffs Hitting, China’s Rust Belt Looks to Belt and Road Initiative
Aug 22 2019 // From Thailand to Kenya, trains run on tracks from steel mills in China’s northeast, a rust-belt region that is trying to capitalize on a multibillion-dollar national initiative to build ports, railways and other...
Drug Maker Endo Skirts Trial, Settles Its Opioid Claims for $11 Million
Aug 21 2019 // Endo International Plc agreed to an $11 million settlement to avoid going to trial in the first federal court cases targeting opioid makers and distributors over the public-health crisis caused by the painkillers. Endo...
The Politics Behind the Push for a Federal Marijuana Business Banking Law
Aug 21 2019 // Senator Jeff Merkley once shadowed a cannabis grower and dispenser as he tried to pay his state taxes. He stuffed a backpack with $70,000 in $20 bills and drove 50 miles — unguarded — with the bulging bag in...