Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Harvard’s Gawande Chosen to Lead Berkshire-Amazon-JPMorgan Health Initiative
Jun 21 2018 // Atul Gawande, a surgeon and journalist who has written extensively about the U.S. failure to grapple with rising healthcare spending, has been named to head a new health venture for Amazon.com Inc., Berkshire Hathaway Inc....
Two P/C Insurance Trade Groups — AIA and PCI — Plan to Merge
Jun 20 2018 // Two leading U.S. property/casualty insurance carrier trade groups are talking about merging. The American Insurance Association (AIA) and the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) said their respective...
Catastrophes Pushed Homeowners Insurers’ Combined Ratio Above 107 in 2017
Jun 20 2018 // After four years of sub-100 combined ratios for the U.S. homeowners insurers, the segment saw its combined ratio deteriorate to 107.1 in 2017 as a result of numerous catastrophes, according to an A.M. Best report. The new...
Opioid Makers Endure Setback as Judge Lets New York Lawsuit Proceed
Jun 20 2018 // Purdue Pharma LP, Johnson & Johnson and other opioid makers faced one of the first extensive reviews of their legal defenses to claims they violated consumer-protection laws and created a public nuisance with the sale...
Correction: Safety Agency Orders Firm to Stop Selling Tesla Warning Reduction Feature
Jun 20 2018 // Correction: An earlier headline on this article incorrectly identified the product as Tesla’s. It is not; it is made by an aftermarket firm. Tesla supports the move to end sales of the product. Insurance Journal...
Maine Employers Are Not Required to Reimburse Employees for Medical Marijuana Use
Jun 19 2018 // The Maine Supreme Court has ruled that employers in the state are not required to reimburse employees for their use of medical marijuana under the Maine workers’ compensation system because federal law preempts state...
CEO of VW’s Audi Arrested in Germany over Emissions Cheating Scandal
Jun 18 2018 // German authorities arrested the head of Volkswagen’s luxury arm Audi on Monday, the most senior company official so far to be detained over the carmaker’s emissions test cheating scandal. Munich prosecutors,...
Major Growth Plans Ahead for Schinnerer Group – Now Rebranded as ‘Victor’
Jun 18 2018 // Big changes are ahead at The Schinnerer Group, a managing general underwriter (MGU), which is getting a new name – Victor – and has some major expansion plans. From its current premium base of $1.2 billion,...
Keeping Up With Construction Insurance
Jun 18 2018 // Brokers who specialize in the construction industry love their clients and are very committed to keeping up with their needs. Ask them, “So what’s new?” and the conversations inevitably veer off in...
NOAA Expects Sea Level Rise to Produce Record Coastal Flooding This Year
Jun 18 2018 // Break out the galoshes. The projected increase in high tide flooding in 2018 may be as much as 60 percent higher across U.S. coastlines compared to typical flooding about 20 years ago, according to scientists at the...
WCIRB: California Workers’ Comp Written Premium to be Down Again This Year
Jun 15 2018 // Lower workers’ compensation rates in California will bring down written premium once again this year, according to a forecast from the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau. That revelation is expected...
Russian Industrial Plants Turn to State Reinsurer to Take More Risk after U.S. Sanctions
Jun 15 2018 // Dozens of industrial plants in Russia have turned to the state’s reinsurance company for cover after an extension of U.S. sanctions made it difficult to get reinsurance elsewhere, the head of that firm told...
Germany Moves Toward U.S.-Style Class-Actions, Benefiting VW Diesel Car Litigants
Jun 15 2018 // Germany will allow interest groups to sue on behalf of consumers, taking a tentative step toward U.S.-style class-action lawsuits in a bid to make it easier to collect damages from big companies in the aftermath of...
Oil Companies Ask to Throw Out New York’s Climate Change Lawsuit
Jun 15 2018 // A group of the world’s biggest oil companies asked a judge to throw out New York City’s lawsuit seeking to hold them responsible for costs related to climate change. ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil Corp. and...
New Wildfire Erupts Near Ski Resorts, Houses in Colorado
Jun 14 2018 // A wildfire erupted Tuesday in an area of Colorado known for its ski resorts, forcing the evacuation of more than 1,300 homes and marking the latest in a series of blazes that have ignited in the drought-stricken U.S....
Sizing Up the Gig Economy
Jun 14 2018 // Look around, and it seems more Americans are working outside traditional full-time jobs — whether as freelance graphic designers or independent contractors or Uber drivers. Or maybe not. A government report this week...
Cat Facility CCRIF Welcomes 2 New Members: British Virgin Islands, Montserrat
Jun 14 2018 // CCRIF SPC (formerly the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility) announced that British Virgin Islands and Montserrat have joined the facility and purchased coverage for the 2018/19 policy year, beginning June...
MGA Volante Obtains US$900M in Capacity to Support 9 Global Underwriting Teams
Jun 14 2018 // Volante Global Ltd., the new international managing general agent (MGA) platform, has successfully secured a US$900 million gross premium, multi-class, multi-territory “A+” capacity treaty agreement. The...
FEMA Assessing Tornado Damage in Connecticut
Jun 14 2018 // Federal Emergency Management Agency officials on Monday began assessing damage from a tornado and a macroburst that hit Connecticut during severe storms last month, a process that could lead to federal aid. Officials...
Trump ‘Probably’ Will Back Lifting Federal Ban on Marijuana
Jun 13 2018 // President Donald Trump said last Friday that he was inclined to support a bipartisan effort in Congress to ease the U.S. ban on marijuana, a proposal that would dramatically reshape the nation’s legal landscape for...
