Latest USA Headlines

All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.

U.S. E-Cigarette Regulation Has Been Delayed for Years

Dec 23 2019 // As the Federal Drug Administration pressures e-cigarette firms to stamp out youth vaping, the agency faces criticism itself for failing to rein in the fast-growing industry after years of bureaucratic delays dating back to...

U.S. Government Backs Bayer in Bid to Overturn Roundup Cancer Verdict

Dec 23 2019 // The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Justice Department said a federal appeals court should reverse a lower court verdict finding Bayer AG liable in the case of a California man who blamed its Roundup weed...

Transgender Woman in Oregon Sues Miss United States of America Pageant

Dec 20 2019 // An Oregon transgender woman is suing Miss United States of America pageants, saying its rule that limits competition to “natural born female” is a form of gender discrimination. The Oregonian/OregonLive reports...

Canada Pension Fund OMERS to Buy Stake in Fairfax Run-off Unit, RiverStone UK

Dec 20 2019 // Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. and OMERS, the pension plan for Ontario’s municipal employees, announced they have entered into an agreement where OMERS will acquire a 40% interest in Fairfax’s UK run-off...

Insured Losses in 2019 Estimated at $56B, Down from $93B Last Year: Swiss Re

Dec 20 2019 // Global insured losses in 2019 dropped to an estimated US$56 billion, from US$93 billion in 2018 and below the annual average (US$75 billion) of the previous 10 years, according to preliminary sigma estimates from Swiss Re...

Reuters Report: Why Big Business Can Count on Courts to Keep Deadly Secrets

Dec 20 2019 // In the dreary archives of a Newark, New Jersey, courthouse, Ronald Motley found a treasure map. It was an evidence log, a detailed inventory of documents and other exhibits that had been used in an injured worker’s...

Industry Balks at Trump Rule to Let States Import Drugs from Canada

Dec 19 2019 // The Trump administration on Wednesday said it is proposing a rule to allow states to import prescription drugs from Canada, advancing a plan announced in July that the president has said will bring cheaper prescription...

Court Nixes Obamacare Mandate But Punts on What That Means for the Law

Dec 18 2019 // A U.S. appeals court ruled on Wednesday that a component of the Obamacare law is unconstitutional, but dodged a major ruling by stopping short of declaring that the rest of the landmark 2010 healthcare statute must also be...

Top 10 Most Ridiculous Lawsuits of 2019: U.S. Chamber

Dec 18 2019 // A lawsuit over the tiny amount of lip balm at the bottom of the tube came in number one on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s list of the Top 10 Most Ridiculous Lawsuits of 2019. This year’s list also features...

Hotel Chains Sued for Ignoring Warning Signs of Sex Trafficking on Premises

Dec 18 2019 // Landmark U.S. legal action was filed last Monday (Dec. 9) accusing several major hotel groups of profiting from sex trafficking on behalf of 13 women who claimed they were sold for sex in hotel rooms. Twelve hotel chains...

Judge Rules U.S. Army Engineers May Be Liable for Hurricane Harvey Floods

Dec 17 2019 // Hundreds of Houston homeowners near U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-managed reservoirs may receive compensation for flooding of their properties during 2017’s Hurricane Harvey, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday. The U.S....

Florida City Faces $1M Ransom by Hackers

Dec 17 2019 // A Florida city confirmed Friday that hackers seeking to extort money were responsible for crippling its computer systems earlier this week but officials have yet to decide whether they will pay a reported $1 million...

Government Spending Bill Includes Flood, TRIA Renewals and Obamacare Taxes Repeal

Dec 17 2019 // Congress is planning to use a $1.4 trillion package of two must-pass spending bills to repeal Obamacare taxes, raise the age for tobacco purchases to 21 and extend the U.S. Export-Import Bank for seven years, according to...

Bayer Asks Appeals Court to Toss $25 Million Roundup Cancer Verdict

Dec 17 2019 // Bayer AG on Monday said it has asked a U.S. federal appeals court to throw out a $25 million judgment it was ordered to pay to a California man who blamed the company’s Roundup weed killer for his cancer. In a filing...

Bermuda Gains Reciprocal Status With U.S. Starting in 2020

Dec 16 2019 // Bermuda’s insurance market gains reciprocal status with the U.S. as of Jan. 1, 2020, something that industry and business groups there are celebrating as they countdown to the new year. Reciprocal status will make...

Federal Safety Agency Starts 12th Probe Into Tesla Crashes

Dec 16 2019 // The U.S. auto safety agency said on Friday it will investigate a 12th Tesla crash that may be tied to the vehicle’s advanced Autopilot driver assistance system after a Tesla Model 3 rear-ended a parked police car in...

Commercial Insurance Market Stable in 2020: A.M. Best

Dec 16 2019 // The market outlook on the U.S. commercial lines industry for 2020 is stable. according to analysts at ratings firm A.M. Best who cite “improved market conditions and solid levels of risk-adjusted capitalization that...

Fitch Sees Strong Revenue Growth for U.S. Public Insurance Brokers

Dec 16 2019 // Publicly traded U.S. insurance brokers are expected to produce strong revenue growth for 2020 given near peak level organic growth and favorable U.S. commercial lines insurance pricing trends. Further, margins remain...

U.S. Commercial Insurance Prices Were Up 4% in Q3: WTW

Dec 16 2019 // U.S. commercial insurance prices accelerated during the third quarter of 2019, as the aggregate price change reported by carriers exceeded 4%, according to insurance broker Willis Towers Watson. WTS’s Commercial...

U.S.- China Phase One Trade Pact Promises Improved IP Protections, Insurance Markets Access

Dec 15 2019 // The United States and China have agreed on the terms of a “phase one” trade deal that reduces some U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods while boosting Chinese purchases of American farm, energy and manufactured goods...