Latest USA Headlines

All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Lawsuit Alleges Uber Uses ‘Biased’ Rider Ratings to Fire Drivers

Oct 27 2020 // Uber Technologies Inc. was accused in a lawsuit of violating the U.S. Civil Rights Act by firing minority drivers based on how they’re rated by customers. “Uber is aware that passengers are prone to...

How Auto Workers Are Keeping Factories Running and Masks On

Oct 27 2020 // When the coronavirus pandemic slammed the United States in March, the Detroit Three automakers shut their plants and brought their North American vehicle production to an unprecedented cold stop. Now, four months after a...

UPDATE: Tropical Storm Zeta Makes Landfall in Mexico, Threatens U.S. Gulf Coast

Oct 27 2020 // Zeta will move into the Gulf of Mexico in the next few hours after making landfall on the Yucatan Peninsula, then regain strength as it heads north toward Louisiana and likely comes ashore Wednesday. Now a tropical storm...

Investors Shrug Off U.S. Concerns as China’s Ant Group Nears $34.4 Billion IPO

Oct 26 2020 // Chinese financial technology giant Ant Group has set terms for a dual listing aimed at raising up to $34.4 billion from the world’s largest stock market debut, with investors scrambling for a piece of the...

BP Evacuates Staff from 4 Gulf of Mexico Oil Platforms as Tropical Storm Zeta Intensifies

Oct 26 2020 // BP on Sunday said it has begun to evacuate four offshore U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil platforms and secure facilities as Tropical Storm Zeta sprang up in the Caribbean Sea. The 27th named storm of this year’s Atlantic...

Scientists Identify Nuclear Plants Facing Highest Risks From Earthquakes

Oct 26 2020 // The U.S. nuclear power reactors facing the highest risks of a meltdown from earthquakes are not in tremor-prone California, but states including South Carolina and Missouri, an analysis of government data published on...

3 More Guilty Pleas in Louisiana Staged Auto/Tractor-Trailer Crashes

Oct 23 2020 // Three more people have pleaded guilty to conspiring to stage accidents between automobiles and tractor-trailers in Louisiana, federal authorities say. Roderick Hickman, 49, of Baton Rouge; Bernell Gale, 43, of Raceland;...

AIG Settles Foreign Tax Credit Dispute With U.S.

Oct 23 2020 // American International Group Inc. settled a case involving cross-border transactions the government claimed amounted to improper tax shelters. The insurer agreed to pay a 10% penalty and disallow more than $400 million in...

U.S. Consumer Agency Weighs Update of Rules on Access to Personal Financial Data

Oct 23 2020 // The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on Thursday said it is seeking public comment on a proposal to modify rules governing the access and use of consumer financial data which is collected by a growing...

Walmart Sues U.S. to Clarify Pharmacy Liability in Opioid Crisis

Oct 23 2020 // Walmart Inc. said on Thursday it had filed a lawsuit against the federal government, seeking clarity on the roles and legal responsibilities of pharmacists and pharmacies in filling opioid prescriptions. Walmart said...

Is Climate Change Making Drought One of the Nation’s Costliest Disasters?

Oct 22 2020 // Drought has become one of the costliest disasters in the U.S., causing 94 deaths and an inflation-adjusted $6.2 billion in losses per year on average since 1980, according to a report out this week from Climate...

Dredge Scarcity Could Make Rebuilding Louisiana’s Coast Slower, More Costly

Oct 22 2020 // Just as Louisiana begins an ambitious slate of projects to rebuild its crumbling coastline, the essential ingredients — sea sand and river silt — will be harder to come by. That’s not because these materials are...

Marsh Adds Aon’s Albers to Lead Its Life Sciences Practice

Oct 22 2020 // Insurance broker Marsh announced that Eddie Albers has joined the firm to lead its U.S. Life Sciences practice. As the leader of Marsh’s U.S. Life Science Practice, Albers will play a key role in assisting life...

Monitor: PG&E in California Prioritized Targets Over Reducing Wildfire Risk

Oct 22 2020 // PG&E Corp. prioritized meeting inspection targets over meaningful reduction of wildfire risk, according to a monitor overseeing the utility’s program of trimming trees and vegetation that pose a threat of...

AM Best’s Estimates for U.S. Insurers’ Asbestos & Environmental Losses Unchanged

Oct 22 2020 // AM Best said its estimates of $100 billion in asbestos losses and $46 billion in environmental losses for the U.S. property/casualty industry remain unchanged as of year-end 2019. In a report, AM Best notes that A&E...

Talanx Acquires Italian Non-Life Insurer Amissima

Oct 22 2020 // The Talanx Group, the Hanover, Germany-based insurance group, announced it is expanding its business in Italy by making a bolt-on acquisition, via its Italian subsidiary. HDI Assicurazioni, a subsidiary of HDI...

North Carolina Agency Owner Sentenced to 5.5 Years for $400K Loan Scheme

Oct 22 2020 // A North Carolina insurance agent has been sentenced to 5.5 years in prison in federal court after being found guilty of orchestrating a $400,000 fraudulent loan scheme involving insurance premiums, according to the U.S....

Purdue Pharma to Plead Guilty Over Opioid Practices; Critics Balk at Terms

Oct 21 2020 // Purdue Pharma LP agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges over the handling of its addictive prescription opioid OxyContin, in a deal with U.S. prosecutors that effectively sidestepped paying billions of dollars in...

Munich Re Reports €800M of COVID-19-Related Losses During Q3

Oct 21 2020 // Munich Re reports approximately €800 million (US$935 million) in COVID-19-related losses in reinsurance during the third quarter. The losses were attributable to various business lines, such as insurance for major events...

Election Security: Retailers Board Up Stores Amid Fears Over More Civil Unrest

Oct 21 2020 // This time last year, shoppers on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile were waiting for Louis Vuitton to debut its whimsical holiday window decorations. Now those same windows are hidden behind a wall of wood panels painted...