San Francisco-based private equity firm Genstar Capital, LLC said it has acquired Innovative Aftermarket Systems, which underwrites and markets motor vehicle protection products and related services sold through franchised automobile dealers. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, IAS offers finance and insurance …
A group of lawmakers in Texas are urging the state’s insurance commissioner to withdraw a request for a waiver to the medical loss ratio (MLR) provision in the federal health insurance reform law. They say the request would cost Texas …
An uncommon December tornado ripped off part of a hospital roof in a southwest Louisiana city, causing several patients to be evacuated, but no injuries. The National Weather Service said the weak tornado touched down at 8:25 a.m. on Dec. …
The Oklahoma Supreme Court struck down on Dec. 20 part of a new law that prevents chiropractors and some other medical professionals from serving as independent medical examiners in the state’s Workers’ Compensation Court and testifying in workers’ compensation cases. …
Workers’ compensation costs per claim for Louisiana grew at a double-digit rate in recent years, the fastest growth among all states in a new study by Cambridge, Mass.-based Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI). The 16-state study, “CompScope Benchmarks for Louisiana, …
The average cost of a workers’ compensation claim in Texas grew 5 percent in 2009, reflecting the impact of recent medical fee schedule increases and possibly some effect of the recession, according to a new study by the Workers Compensation …
An experimental asbestos demolition method used to tear down a Fort Worth, Texas, apartment building four years ago may have exposed workers and the public to carcinogenic fibers, the Environmental Protection Agency said. The EPA’s inspector general said dust from …
Louisiana’s highest court has reinstated a nearly $100 million judgment against the state’s property insurer of last resort in a class action lawsuit stemming from Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The Louisiana Supreme Court on Dec. 16 issued a judgment that …
As many as 500 million trees scattered across the Lone Star State have died this year as a result of the unrelenting drought, according to preliminary estimates from Texas Forest Service. The Texas Forest Service reports that the numbers were …
The Insurance Council of Texas (ICT) has elected Joe Johnson chairman of the board of directors beginning Jan. 1, 2012. Johnson is vice president and regional manager of the United Fire Group. Johnson has served 35 years in the insurance …
