Latest COVID-19 Headlines
All the headlines from our COVID-19 Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Judge Upholds United Airlines’ COVID Vaccine Mandate for Employees
Nov 9 2021 // A U.S. federal judge on Monday ruled United Airlines Holdings Inc. can impose a COVID-19 vaccine mandate on its employees that only provides unpaid leave for workers who are exempted for medical or religious reasons. U.S....
Telehealth Firms See Post-COVID Mental Health Crisis as Priority
Nov 9 2021 // LISBON — Demand for online mental health care will be a priority in the post-COVID world, bosses of telehealth apps say, after lockdowns took a toll on people’s wellbeing and requests for virtual appointments...
Federal Court in Tenn. Dismisses Another COVID Coverage Suit
Nov 9 2021 // Another federal court has dismissed a COVID-19 virus-coverage lawsuit brought by a company that had its business-interruption claim denied by its insurance carrier. In Agilitas USA vs. Hartford Fire Insurance Co., the U.S....
6th Circuit Rejects COVID-19 Business-Interruption Claim by Ohio Private Pre-Schools
Nov 9 2021 // The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals on Nov. 5 affirmed the dismissal of another lawsuit seeking coverage for COVID-19 business-interruption losses, this one filed jointly by 16 private pre-schools in Ohio. It was the third...
Report Says Long-Haul COVID Cases Could Affect Workers For Months
Nov 9 2021 // Just as COVID-19 infections nationwide appear to be on the decline, employers and workers’ compensation insurers need to be prepared for a sobering reality: Studies suggest that 10% to 30% of those who had only mild...
Berkshire Hathaway Insurance Losses Continued in Q3 on Catastrophes, Pandemic
Nov 8 2021 // Overall net income fell at giant Berkshire Hathaway in the third quarter from $30.1 billion a year ago to $10.3 billion this third quarter, reflecting losses on insurance underwriting as well as the continuing effects of...
Court Stays OSHA’s COVID Vaccine Mandate on Business With 100+ Employees
Nov 7 2021 // NEW ORLEANS — A federal appeals court on Saturday temporarily halted the Biden administration’s vaccine requirement for businesses with 100 or more workers. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted an...
Why Millions Have Left Workforce During Pandemic
Nov 5 2021 // Approximately five million people in the U.S. are unemployed or have left the workforce since the pandemic began, and it is difficult to predict whether their decision was short term or permanent. According to S&P...
Canada Insurers, Banks Can Resume Dividend Hikes as Regulator Lifts COVID-Era Curbs
Nov 5 2021 // TORONTO – Canadian banks and insurers can resume dividend increases and share buybacks and raise executive compensation, the country’s financial regulator said on Thursday, lifting a moratorium it imposed in March...
Biden COVID-19 Vaccine Rules for Businesses Prompt Republican Backlash
Nov 5 2021 // President Joe Biden will enforce a mandate that workers at U.S. companies with at least 100 employees be vaccinated against COVID-19 or be tested weekly starting Jan. 4, spurring legal challenges from Republican governors...
Missouri Judge Rules in Favor of Insurer in COVID-19 Business-Interruption Claim
Nov 3 2021 // A Kansas City jury decided in favor of the insurer in the nation’s first jury trail of a lawsuit that sought coverage for business-interruption losses caused by the coronavirus. The jury for the U.S. District Court...
States Sue to End Biden COVID Vaccine Mandate for Federal Contractors
Nov 1 2021 // Eighteen states filed three separate lawsuits Friday to stop President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for federal contractors, arguing that the requirement violates federal law. Attorneys general from Alaska,...
UK Baker Greggs Files $137M Claim Against Zurich Over COVID-19 Payout
Nov 1 2021 // UK baker Greggs Plc filed a $137 million (£100 million) legal claim against Switzerland’s Zurich Insurance Group in a disagreement over a pandemic-related insurance payout, according to a report in the Sunday...
Iowa Governor Signs Law Allowing Exemptions to COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates
Nov 1 2021 // Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds on Oct. 29 signed into law a bill that allows Iowa workers to seek medical and religious exemptions from COVID-19 vaccine mandates and guarantees that those who are fired for refusing a vaccine will...
Report Sounds Alarm Over Workers With Long-Term COVID-19 Symptoms
Nov 1 2021 // About 10% of people who contracted COVID-19 continue to suffer persistent symptoms months later, creating the potential for millions of people to suffer functional impairment for extended lengths of time, according to a...
Texas Workers’ Comp Telemedicine Utilization Soared During Pandemic
Nov 1 2021 // Utilization of telemedicine services in the Texas workers’ compensation rose dramatically during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a recently published report from the Texas Department of Insurance...
Uncovering Opportunities in the Shifting Landscape Emerging from COVID-19
Nov 1 2021 // As I write this, in the fall of 2021, it’s now clear that we are going to be living and working with COVID-19 for the indeterminant future – perhaps forever. Regardless of one’s opinions about vaccines,...
California Workers’ Comp Hospital Stays Decline as COVID Affects Quantity and Types of Admissions
Oct 29 2021 // The latest update to California Workers’ Compensation Institute research on California workers’ compensation inpatient hospital stays shows the number of injured worker hospitalizations fell 17.2% in 2020,...
Arkansas Sues Medical Supplier for $11M for Failed COVID Supplies Delivery
Oct 29 2021 // The state of Arkansas filed a consumer protection lawsuit Wednesday against a Virginia-based medical supplier for nearly $11 million for failing to deliver supplies during the coronavirus pandemic, Attorney General Leslie...
Judge Rejects Southwest Airlines Pilots’ Bid to Block COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate
Oct 28 2021 // A federal judge has rejected a bid by pilots to block Southwest Airlines from imposing a vaccine mandate, saying the Dallas-based airline is within its power to require vaccination as a safety measure. U.S. District Judge...
