Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Fate of Anthem-Cigna Merger Now in Judge’s Hands
Dec 14 2016 // The first phase of the U.S. Justice Department’s lawsuit to halt Anthem Inc.’s planned takeover of rival insurer Cigna Corp. is in the hands of a federal judge after the government wrapped up its arguments...
Tax Reformers Must Take Care Not to Kill Reinsurance Market
Dec 13 2016 // During the 2016 presidential election, one theme from President-elect Donald Trump rang louder than any other: the importance of keeping jobs in America and finding ways to encourage (or perhaps force) companies that have...
Fate of DuPont Chemical Lawsuits Rests on Wording in 2004 Pact
Dec 13 2016 // For DuPont Co. and its Chemours Co. spinoff, hundreds of millions of dollars hinge on the interpretation of the word “among.” A Cincinnati appeals court heard arguments Friday that will affect the fate of...
Georgia-Based ConAgra to Finalize $11.2M Settlement Over Tainted Peanut Butter
Dec 12 2016 // Food giant ConAgra faces a court hearing to finalize an $11.2 million settlement – including the largest criminal fine ever in a U.S. food safety case – to resolve federal charges in a salmonella outbreak that sickened...
Aetna CEO Denies Obamacare Exits Were Retaliation for U.S. Opposing Humana Merger
Dec 12 2016 // Aetna Inc.’s chief executive denied on Friday that its withdrawal from some Obamacare exchanges was in retaliation for government efforts to halt its merger with Humana Inc, as he sought to convince a federal judge...
NAIC Taps Former Pennsylvania Commissioner, Transamerica Exec Consedine as CEO
Dec 12 2016 // Ten months after its last chief executive officer departed, the national organization of state insurance regulators has named former Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Michael F. Consedine as its new CEO. Consedine will...
U.S. Approves Modified Arkansas’ ‘Private Option’ Medicaid Expansion
Dec 9 2016 // Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson says federal officials have approved a number of changes the state wants to make in a Medicaid expansion program known as “Arkansas Works.” The governor said that the Department of...
La Niña to Lessen Over Next Few Months: U.S. Weather Service
Dec 8 2016 // A U.S. government weather forecaster on Thursday said weak La Niña conditions were present but favored to dissipate in the coming months. The National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center said in a monthly...
New Zealand Quake’s Insured Losses Estimated at $705M-$3.5B: Aon Cat Report
Dec 8 2016 // Insurance losses from last month’s magnitude 7.8 earthquake in New Zealand are likely to range between NZ$1.0 to 5.0 billion (US$705 million and US$3.5 billion), according to a report published by Impact Forecasting,...
Johnson & Johnson to Challenge $1 Billion Hip Implant Verdict
Dec 8 2016 // Johnson & Johnson will challenge the fairness of a trial that produced a verdict of $1 billion in damages against the company last week over allegations of design flaws in its Pinnacle hip implant. Although legal...
Insurers Lobby for Clarity as Republicans Move to Repeal Obamacare
Dec 8 2016 // The largest lobbying group for health insurers has asked U.S. lawmakers weighing the fate of Obamacare to push back the due date for 2018 individual insurance submissions to regulators in hopes of obtaining greater clarity...
A Look Back at 2016 Atlantic Hurricane Season
Dec 8 2016 // The 2016 Atlantic hurricane season concluded on Nov. 30 with 15 named storms generating seven hurricanes, three of which were considered major ones, according to the industry’s Insurance Information Institute...
Supreme Court Orders Refiguring of Samsung’s Damages in Patent Fight with Apple
Dec 6 2016 // The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday sided with Samsung in its big-money smartphone patent fight with Apple, throwing out an appeals court ruling that said the South Korean company had to pay a $399 million penalty to its...
Court Delays Appeal Over Obamacare’s Insurer Reimbursements Until After Trump Takes Office
Dec 6 2016 // A federal appeals court on Monday agreed to put on hold until after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January the Obama administration’s appeal of a judge’s ruling favoring a Republican...
Insureon CEO on Growth, Hockey Pucks and the Perils of Complacency
Dec 6 2016 // A major online provider of commercial insurance for small businesses in the United States keeps track of its growth milestones with hockey pucks. OK, that might be a bit of a stretch but Chicago-based Insureon definitely...
House Labor Panel Chair Foxx Ready to Take on Unions, Democrats
Dec 6 2016 // The incoming chair of the congressional panel that oversees labor issues on Monday questioned the need for unions and said she wants to repeal various Obama administration labor policies. Organized labor has “sort of...
Liberty Mutual to Acquire Ironshore from China’s Fosun for $3 Billion
Dec 5 2016 // Liberty Mutual Insurance has agreed to acquire specialty lines insurer Ironshore Inc. from China’s Fosun International Limited. Liberty Mutual will acquire a 100 percent ownership interest in Ironshore. According to...
Death Toll from Fire in Oakland Artist Loft Reaches 33
Dec 5 2016 // A fire that devastated an Oakland, California, loft building during a weekend dance party has taken at least 33 lives and the toll will likely rise, authorities said on Sunday, as criminal investigators joined recovery...
Wal-Mart to Settle Bias Suit Over Gay Benefits for $7.5 Million
Dec 5 2016 // Wal-Mart Stores Inc. agreed to pay $7.5 million to settle a lawsuit accusing the company of discriminating against gay workers by failing to offer health insurance benefits to their spouses. The settlement covers employees...
U.S. Regulators Say ‘Quiet’ Cars Need to Make Noise
Dec 5 2016 // The U.S. government has finalized long-delayed rules that will require “quiet cars” like electric vehicles and hybrids to emit alert sounds when they are moving at speeds of up to 18.6 miles per hour to help...
