Latest California Headlines
All the headlines from our California Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Medical Access in California Workers’ Compensation Examined
Mar 7 2022 // A new California Workers’ Compensation Institute study shows injured workers’ overall access to medical care for their initial treatment remained relatively consistent between 2010 and 2020. CWCI used data from...
Lawsuit: Faulty Equipment Killed California Firefighters
Mar 7 2022 // The families of two California firefighters killed in a 2020 blaze are suing several makers of life-saving equipment for negligence, alleging the devices were defective and caused their loved ones’ deaths, the...
California Couple Sentenced in $1M Workers’ Comp Fraud Case
Mar 7 2022 // Carmen Hall Soruco, 70, and her husband Antonio Soruco, 75, both of Novato, California, were sentenced after pleading guilty to workers’ compensation fraud charges. Hall was sentenced on multiple felony counts to two...
California Cites Resort $3.3M for Failing to Rehire Workers Axed During Pandemic
Mar 4 2022 // The California Labor Commissioner’s Office cited Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes $3.3 million for failing to offer job positions to 53 employees laid off during the COVID-19 pandemic once the resort...
People Moves: Pinnacol Names O’Donnell President and CEO; Altman Becomes CEO of Covered California
Mar 4 2022 // Pinnacol Assurance named John O’Donnell president and CEO. He will join the company Feb. 28. O’Donnell will succeed Phil Kalin, who is retiring on March 31. O’Donnell has 30 years of leadership...
Oil Company Sues Over California Underwater Pipeline Leak
Mar 2 2022 // A Houston-based oil company on Feb. 28 sued two container ship operators and an organization that helps oversee marine traffic, saying they failed to prevent last fall’s underwater pipeline leak off the Southern...
California Bar Investigates After Records Published Online
Mar 2 2022 // The State Bar of California is investigating a data breach after learning that a website published confidential information about 260,000 attorney discipline cases in California and other jurisdictions. State Bar officials...
‘Injections, Injections, Injections’: Troubling Questions Follow Closure of Sprawling Pain Clinic Chain
Mar 2 2022 // HANFORD, Calif. — On May 13 of last year, the cellphones of thousands of California residents undergoing treatment for chronic pain lit up with a terse text message: “Due to unforeseen circumstances, Lags Medical...
People Moves: Pathpoint Names Blust Chief Revenue Officer; Woodruff Sawyer Adds Urick in California
Mar 2 2022 // Pathpoint Inc. named Ralph Blust chief revenue officer and president. Blust oversees Pathpoint’s sales and underwriting operations teams. Blust has more than 35 years of insurance industry leadership. He was most...
California Allows Cruise, Waymo Autonomous Vehicle Passenger Service
Mar 1 2022 // The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) on Monday issued permits to self-driving units of General Motors and Alphabet Inc. to allow for passenger service in autonomous vehicles with safety drivers present. CPUC...
8 Hurt and 15 Rescued in California Apartment Building Fire
Feb 28 2022 // Firefighters in San Francisco rescued 15 people and seven cats and dogs as flames ripped through an apartment building, officials said. The fire burned on the third and fourth floors of the building in the city’s...
People Moves: Surplus Line Association of California Names Beaver Board Chair, Gobler Vice Chair, Washington Secretary
Feb 28 2022 // The members of the Surplus Line Association of California elected Janet Beaver as chair of the SLA board. Eligible members of the SLA elected her via an electronic vote taken prior to the SLA’s virtual annual meeting...
California Commissioner Wants to Require Insurers to Factor Wildfire Safety Steps into Pricing
Feb 25 2022 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced new regulations he believes will improve wildfire safety and drive down the cost of insurance for homeowners and businesses. The proposed regulations, which could be...
U.S. Won’t Give Water to California Farmers Because of Drought
Feb 25 2022 // With California entering the third year of severe drought, federal officials said Wednesday they won’t deliver any water to farmers in the state’s major agricultural region – a decision that will force many...
People Moves: California FAIR Plan Makes Roach President; Wood Named Washington Chief Deputy Commissioner
Feb 24 2022 // Victoria Roach has been appointed by the California FAIR Plan’s executive committee to serve as the association’s next president. Roach will assume the new role on March 1, succeeding Anneliese Jivan, was...
City Insurance Launches in More California and Colorado Cities
Feb 23 2022 // Distinguished Programs is expanding its City Insurance program to select cities in California and Colorado, as well as launching new umbrella coverage eligibility for condos and rentals with underlying City Insurance...
California Lawmaker Introduces Bill to ‘Restore Ethics and Transparency’ at Department of Insurance
Feb 22 2022 // Citing continuing failures by the California Department of Insurance to maintain public access to government records and efforts to limit public disclosure of communications between insurance industry advocates and the...
Mechanical Issues Reported Before California Police Helicopter Crash
Feb 22 2022 // A pilot reported mechanical issues shortly before a police helicopter crashed nose first along the Southern California coast, killing one officer, authorities said Sunday. A Huntington Beach officer who was injured in the...
Foresight in California Expands Workers’ Comp Class Codes for Agribusiness, Construction, Manufacturing
Feb 22 2022 // San Francisco, California-based Foresight, a workers’ compensation insurtech focused on the middle market, announced the expansion to include four new class codes and 23 incidental adjacencies to serve more customers...
California Becomes First State to Adopt ‘Endemic’ Virus Policy
Feb 22 2022 // California became the first state to formally shift to an “endemic” approach to the coronavirus with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s announcement of a plan that emphasizes prevention and quick reaction to outbreaks...
