National News

Senators Encouraged by Talks on Farm Bill

U.S. lawmakers are very close to reaching a consensus in days on the Farm Bill, two senior senators said on Wednesday, after months of bitter partisan debate over the legislation to fund $867 billion in food and agriculture programs. “We …

Applied Systems Among Firms Layering Loans to Pay Equity Owners

First the companies tapped the loan market. Not long after that, they came back for more. Corporations like Bausch Health Cos., a drugmaker, telecom provider Sprint Corp. and Applied Systems Inc., an insurance software provider, borrowed again this month after …

FDA Vows Overhaul of Medical Device Approval System

U.S. health officials said this week they plan to overhaul the nation’s decades-old system for approving most medical devices, which has long been criticized by experts for failing to catch problems with risky implants and medical instruments. The Food and …

What Insurers Want and Get from Insurtech Partnerships

Remember the scene in the 1989 movie When Harry Met Sally? During lunch with Harry at a deli, Sally very publicly fakes a wild orgasm. A nearby patron, when asked what she’d like to order, signals in Sally’s direction and …

Puerto Rico Reforms Claims, Surplus Lines, Other Insurance Laws

The governor of Puerto Rico overhauled the U.S. territory’s insurance laws on Tuesday to help protect policyholders as thousands of claims remain unresolved more than a year after Hurricane Maria. Gov. Ricardo Rossello signed six laws into effect as he …

How Insurer Deployed Technology to Expedite Wildfire Claims

As wildfires raged this month in California, insurance claims experts at Travelers sat in a command center 3,000 miles (4,828 kilometers) away in Connecticut, monitoring screens showing satellite images, photos from airplane flyovers and social media posts describing what was …

Fitch Warns of Negative Credit Effects on Reinsurance from California Wildfires

The “downside credit risks” from the California wildfires are the most pronounced for investor-owned utilities, which could face large liabilities if IOU equipment is found to have ignited the fires. And negative credit implications could emerge for the reinsurance industry …

Ironshore Enhances Contractors Ability Coverage for Pollution Incidents

Ironshore Environmental has enhanced its Contractors Environmental Legal Liability (CELL) program to include coverage for damages resulting from pollution incidents caused by the contractor’s work. CELL is offered on an occurrence basis and can be underwritten as a practice, project …

IBM Joins Critics Calling for Regulation of Tech Firms’ Personal Data Use

International Business Machines Corp. Chief Executive Officer Ginni Rometty joined a growing chorus of tech executives lambasting web platforms, like Google and Facebook Inc., over their collection of user data and urged governments to target regulation at those companies. Without …

How Taxpayers Subsidize Rebuilding Homes After Flooding… Repeatedly

Floodwaters rose about 15 inches (40 centimeters) into Danielle Rees’ home in September when Hurricane Florence drenched this tidewater city on the Pamlico River and overwhelmed a local creek and marshland. The first floor was a sopping mess of gritty, …

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