Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Circle These Dates: Health Law’s Key Tests in 2014
Dec 31 2013 // The new year brings the big test of President Barack Obama’s beleaguered health care law: Will it work? The heart of the law springs to life Wednesday, after nearly four years of political turmoil and three months of...
U.S. Opens Skies to Test Use of Aerial Drones
Dec 31 2013 // The U.S. government took a step on Monday toward opening the skies to aerial drones, authorizing six sites where unmanned aircraft can be tested for a variety of uses. The Federal Aviation Administration already had...
Second Suicide Bomber in Russia’s Volgograd Kills 14 on Bus
Dec 31 2013 // A bomb ripped a bus apart in Volgograd on Monday, killing 14 people in the second deadly attack blamed on suicide bombers in the southern Russian city in 24 hours and raising fears of Islamist attacks on the Winter...
Southern California Bus Company Ordered to Cease Operations
Dec 30 2013 // The U.S. Department of Transportation ordered a Los Angeles-based bus company to cease operations after federal safety investigators said they discovered its vehicles were allowed on the road with serious safety defects...
The Top 25 U.S. Insurance Stories of 2013
Dec 30 2013 // In 2013, InsuranceJournal.com readers flocked to news about insurance carriers (Travelers, Berkshire, Liberty Mutual, Tower and others) making moves, changes in Obamacare, the fate of federal flood insurance reforms and...
Terrorism Insurance Extended to Four Airlines
Dec 29 2013 // U.S. government insurance that guarantees airlines are covered against terrorism and war was extended for four carriers, including Virgin America Inc., that otherwise would have lost coverage at the end of the...
Safety Improvements On Tap In Minnesota Highway Plan
Dec 27 2013 // One of the priorities of Minnesota’s highway plan for the next two decades calls for investing in safety-related road improvements. The Department of Transportation recently wrapped up a 20-year state highway...
Allstate Settles Lawsuit Against Deutsche Bank Over Mortgage Securities
Dec 27 2013 // Deutsche Bank AG and Allstate Corp. settled a suit the insurer brought that accused the bank of misrepresentations and omissions in connection with loans backing $185 million in mortgage securities. Allstate sued the...
German Firms Not Liable Under U.S. Alien Tort Statute for Aiding Apartheid
Dec 27 2013 // A U.S. judge on Thursday said Daimler AG and Rheinmetall AG cannot be held liable for allegedly aiding and abetting South Africa’s former apartheid government in race-based attacks and injustices. The plaintiffs in...
Judge Rejects BP Complaint Over Proof of Economic Losses from Gulf Oil Spill
Dec 27 2013 // BP Plc lost a bid to require businesses to provide proof their economic losses were caused by the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill under a $9.2 billion settlement over the disaster. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New...
Ironshore Increases Capacity for Select U.S. Specialty Lines
Dec 24 2013 // Ironshore Inc. will be providing coverage of up to $50 million for selected U.S. casualty lines, as of January 1, 2014. Increased capacity, up from the current limits of $25 million, will be available in the U.S. for...
Massachusetts Pharmacy to Pay $100M to Victims of Meningitis Outbreak
Dec 24 2013 // Owners and insurers of a now-bankrupt Massachusetts pharmacy linked to a deadly meningitis outbreak have agreed to pay more than $100 million to compensate victims, families of victims and creditors. The preliminary...
P/C Insurers Boost Bottom Line on Big Gain in Underwriting Through 9 Months
Dec 23 2013 // Private U.S. property/casualty insurers’ net income after taxes rose to $43 billion in nine-months 2013 from $27.8 billion in nine-months 2012, with insurers’ overall profitability as measured by their...
Federal Reserve Allows Ally Financial to Keep Insurance Unit
Dec 23 2013 // Ally Financial Inc., the auto lender majority owned by the U.S. government, won regulatory approval to change its holding-company status, allowing the firm to keep an insurance business and a vehicle-auction website. The...
Judge Rejects Catholic Church Challenge to Obamacare Birth Control Coverage
Dec 23 2013 // The Catholic Church isn’t harmed by the U.S. Affordable Care Act’s requirement for providing employees with insurance coverage for contraceptives, a judge ruled, throwing out most of a lawsuit challenging the...
Best Places Canopius US Insurance Under Review
Dec 23 2013 // A.M. Best Co. has placed under review with developing implications the financial strength rating of ‘A-‘ (Excellent) and issuer credit rating of “a-” of Delaware-based Canopius US Insurance, Inc....
Best Downgrades Tower Group and Subs Ratings; Under Review/Negative
Dec 23 2013 // Last Friday, A.M. Best Co. downgraded the financial strength rating (FSR) to B (Fair) from B++ (Good) of the pooled and reinsured members of the Tower U.S. Pool. A.M. Best said the downgrade and other related actions take...
Insurance Questions, Lawsuits Arise in Wake of Target’s Data Breach
Dec 22 2013 // U.S. retail giant Target Corp. is busy dealing with the aftermath of the massive data breach that exposed account details of some 40 million credit and debit cards. Already, at least two lawsuits seeking class-action...
Happy Holidays: Target’s Message May Put Scare Into Firms Without Cyber Coverage
Dec 20 2013 // Target Corp.’s data breach headache may be an opportunity for insurance carriers, insurance agents, risk managers and businesses to spread the word about cyber risk – although the message is bit of a scary one. The...
Target Credit Card Breach a Reminder U.S. Lags in Personal Data Security
Dec 20 2013 // The security breach of credit and debit card data at Target Corp. is evidence of the increasing threats retailers face and a reminder that the U.S. lags behind much of the world in securing personal financial...
