Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Coronavirus Update: On Decline in China But of Rising Concern in South Korea, Italy, Iran
Feb 25 2020 // Iran’s coronavirus death toll rose to 16 on Tuesday, the most outside China, heightening its international isolation as dozens of worst-hit nations from South Korea to Italy accelerated emergency measures to curb the...
Federal Appeals Court in New York Approves of $6.7M Award to Graffiti Artists
Feb 25 2020 // A federal appeals court in New York gave its approval Thursday to a $6.7 million award for nearly two dozen graffiti artists whose spray paintings at a once-famous site that attracted thousands of spectators were destroyed...
Judge Wants Questions Answered on Plan to Remove Capsized Ship in Georgia
Feb 24 2020 // A federal judge on Friday ordered attorneys for the U.S. Coast Guard and a maritime salvage company to answer detailed questions about plans to remove an overturned cargo ship on the Georgia coast by sawing it into eight...
Wells Fargo to Pay $3B to U.S. to Settle Fake Accounts Scandal
Feb 24 2020 // Wells Fargo & Co. has agreed to pay $3 billion to resolve criminal and civil probes into fraudulent sales practices and has admitted to pressuring employees in a fake-accounts scandal, U.S. officials said on Friday,...
Berkshire Hathaway P/C Insurance Profit Down in 2019
Feb 24 2020 // Full-year insurance results at Berkshire Hathaway disappointed in 2019, with after-tax earnings from underwriting falling to $325 million in 2019 compared to $1.6 billion in 2018. Earnings from primary insurance operations...
Agricultural Industry Looks to Dogs as the Next Crop Inspectors
Feb 24 2020 // Dogs specially trained by the federal government’s Agricultural Research Service scientists have proven to be the most efficient way to detect huanglongbing — also known as citrus greening — according to...
Judge Rules Army Corps Not Responsible for Harvey Flooding Damage
Feb 21 2020 // A federal judge has ruled the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers isn’t liable to damage to thousands of Houston homes that were inundated by two federally owned reservoirs in the days following Hurricane Harvey because...
Lawmakers to Introduce Bipartisan Bill Aimed at Internet Firms’ Liability Shield
Feb 21 2020 // U.S. legislation will be introduced in the coming weeks that could hurt technology companies’ ability to offer end-to-end encryption, two sources with knowledge of the matter said, and it aims to curb the...
Russia Blamed for Massive Cyber Attack Against Nation of Georgia in 2019
Feb 21 2020 // Georgia accused Russian military intelligence of organizing a “paralyzing” cyber attack last year and called for a reaction by the international community. Russia’s GRU was behind the...
How One County Plans to Vet Insurers for Fossil Fuel Investments
Feb 20 2020 // “We have front row seats,” said Elise Jones, a Boulder County commissioner. Jones along with two other commissioners oversees government affairs in the Colorado county of 330,000 or so at the base of the...
Bills in Congress, States Seek to Curb Litigation Funding
Feb 20 2020 // Lawmakers in three states and in Congress have introduced bills to impose more controls on litigation funding companies, which insurers contend are one of the factors leading to an increase in “nuclear...
Attorney General Barr: Should Tech Giants Still Be Free From Liability for Content?
Feb 20 2020 // U.S. Attorney General William Barr on Wednesday questioned whether Facebook, Google and other major online platforms still need the immunity from legal liability that has prevented them from being sued over material their...
Coronavirus Raises Insurance Questions But Catastrophe-Tested Insurers Are Prepared
Feb 20 2020 // As the coronavirus outbreak continues to cause concern around the globe, the insurance industry is facing a potentially far-reaching impact but has the experience to handle what might come its way. Based on what the...
Activist Hedge Fund Elliott Investment Builds Stake in Dutch Insurer NN Group
Feb 20 2020 // Elliott Investment Management, U.S. billionaire Paul Singer’s activist hedge fund firm, has built up a 3.04% stake in Dutch insurer NN Group, a filing by the Dutch financial regulator AFM showed on...
Swiss Re 2019 Profit Hit by Natural Disasters, U.S. Casualty Claims
Feb 20 2020 // Reinsurer Swiss Re reported on Thursday a smaller-than-expected profit in 2019 due to claims for a series of man-made and natural disasters, as well as expenses for its U.S. casualty business, sending its shares lower. Net...
Suit Against Army Corps for Post-Harvey Flooding Dismissed by Federal Judge
Feb 20 2020 // A federal judge has ruled that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers isn’t liable for flood damage to thousands of Houston homes after the agency cracked open the gates on two massive dams in the wake of Hurricane...
Homeland Security Reports Ransomware Attack Shut Gas Pipeline Facility for Two Days
Feb 19 2020 // The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has alerted energy and other infrastructure firms to review their cybersecurity after a ransomware attack interrupted a natural gas compression facility. The attack caused the...
Argo Group Appoints Bradley as Chairman; Rehnberg Named CEO
Feb 19 2020 // Argo Group International Holdings Ltd., the Bermuda-based re/insurer, announced the appointment of Thomas A. Bradley as chairman of the board of directors upon the retirement of current board chairman Gary V. Woods, whose...
Trial Set to Begin for North Carolina Insurance Magnate Accused of Political Corruption
Feb 18 2020 // The trial of an insurance company magnate and two associates on charges they conspired to bribe an elected North Carolina regulator with up to $2 million in campaign money so scrutiny of his businesses would ease is...
Cruise Ship Tests Coronavirus Containment as 300 Passengers Return to U.S.
Feb 17 2020 // TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif./GENEVA, Feb 17 —More than 300 American cruise liner passengers, including 14 who tested positive for coronavirus, were flown home to military bases in the United States after two weeks under...
