Latest Washington Headlines
All the headlines from our Washington Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Anthem-Cigna Merger Trial Pits Efficiency Claims vs. Loss of Competition Claims
Dec 19 2016 // Anthem Inc. and the U.S. Justice Department extended their clash over whether the insurer’s planned takeover of rival Cigna Corp. will raise costs, as government witnesses testified Friday that the deal will harm...
Insurance Foundation Launches Washington Chapter
Dec 19 2016 // The Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation Western Division has opened a Washington chapter. This marks the introduction of the division’s third chapter, following the launch of its Colorado and Arizona chapters in...
Washington Workers’ Comp Rates for 2017 to Increase Less Than 1%
Dec 19 2016 // The average premium for workers’ compensation coverage in Washington will go up less than 1 percent in 2017, according to the Department of Labor & Industries. L&I announced this month the rate will rise by...
Kreidler Revokes Licenses of Washington Agency, Issues Fines to Others
Dec 13 2016 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler issued fines in November totaling $63,550 against insurance companies, agents and brokers who violated state insurance regulations, including revoking the licenses of one...
Washington Psych Hospital Employee Charged with Molesting Patients
Dec 8 2016 // Prosecutors have charged an employee at Washington state’s largest psychiatric hospital with four counts of molesting four female patients, according to court records made public Friday. Christopher Conley, 47, was...
Duck Boat Maker to Pay up to $1M over Washington Crash
Dec 7 2016 // The company that manufactured a duck boat involved in a deadly crash in Seattle last year has agreed to pay up to $1 million in civil penalties under a consent order, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration...
Cleanup Costs of Oregon Train Derailment Along River Pilling Up
Dec 6 2016 // Six months after a train hauling Bakken crude oil derailed along the Columbia River Gorge, Washington, Oregon and other officials are still tabulating a bill to send to Union Pacific Railroad. Union Pacific said in a...
Insurance Foundation Launches Washington Chapter
Dec 1 2016 // The Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation Western Division has opened a Washington chapter. This marks the introduction of the division’s third chapter, following the launch of its Colorado and Arizona Chapters in...
Washington Commissioner Deems Zenefits’ Free Software Offer Illegal
Dec 1 2016 // This story has been updated with comment from Zenefits. Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler ordered Zenefits to cease free distribution of its employee benefits software, saying the tactic violates state...
Washington Workers’ Comp Rates for 2017 to Increase Less Than 1%
Nov 30 2016 // The average premium for workers’ compensation coverage in Washington will go up less than 1 percent in 2017, according to the Department of Labor & Industries. LL&I announced today the rate will rise by an...
Rains Create Landslide Threat in Western Washington
Nov 28 2016 // The National Weather Service in Seattle is warning that recent heavy rainfall has led to an increased threat of landslides throughout the western part of the state. The alert notes that the recent rainfall has put extra...
BNSF in Washington to Examine Covering Coal Trains Under Agreement
Nov 23 2016 // BNSF Railway will study the use of physical covers for coal and petroleum coke trains as part of a tentative agreement reached this week with environmental groups that sued alleging that coal spilled from trains pollutes...
Washington Governor Wants Coordinated Earthquake, Tsunami Response Plan
Nov 21 2016 // Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is directing several state agencies to work together to prepare for a coordinated plan in case of a catastrophic earthquake and tsunami. The directive, which was issued earlier this month,...
2 Former Postal Employees Convicted in Dallas for Workers’ Comp Fraud
Nov 17 2016 // Two former U.S. Postal Service employees have been convicted on felony charges related to a workers’ compensation fraud scheme, U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas announced. McArthur Baker,...
Washington Commissioner Elected for Fifth Term
Nov 9 2016 // Incumbent Mike Kreidler (D) will serve a fifth term as Washington’s insurance commissioner. Kreidler defeated Richard Schrock (R) with 60.13 percent of the vote in his bid for reelection. Schrock got 39.87 percent of...
Judge Refuses to Dismiss Nuclear Plant Lawsuit in Washington
Nov 7 2016 // A federal judge has rejected the U.S. Department of Energy’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Washington state over worker safety issues at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation. U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Rice...
Washington Governor Wants Coordinated Earthquake, Tsunami Response Plan
Nov 7 2016 // Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is directing several state agencies to work together to prepare for a coordinated plan in case of a catastrophic earthquake and tsunami. Friday’s directive creates a subcabinet group of the...
Suit against Washington Shoemaker over Use of Marathoner’s Name Dismissed
Nov 3 2016 // The maker of a popular line of minimalist running shoes doesn’t have to pay damages for naming some of its models after Abebe Bikila, the legendary Ethiopian runner who won the 1960 Olympics marathon barefoot, a...
Judge Allows Washington City’s Pollution Suit against Monsanto to Proceed
Nov 2 2016 // A federal judge says Spokane’s lawsuit against the agrochemical giant Monsanto regarding pollution in Washington’s Spokane River can move forward. The city sued Monsanto last year, alleging the company knew for...
Judge in Washington Finds Railway Could Be Liable if Spills Proven
Oct 28 2016 // A federal judge in Seattle has found that BNSF Railway could be held liable in a lawsuit claiming that coal spilled from trains pollutes waterways if environmental groups can show at trial that such discharges actually...
