Massachusetts News

SPRINKLER OPPOSITION:

Dozens of Massachusetts restaurants and private clubs are appealing a state mandate that they install sprinkler systems, arguing that they are being misclassified as nightclubs. The Legislature last year passed a law requiring any club with occupancy of 100 or …

PCI Meeting Focuses on Reform of “Flawed” Regulatory System

Regulatory reform, terrorism insurance and the eventual impact of record-breaking natural disasters were the main topics of discussion at the annual meeting of the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, held in Chicago last month. In opening remarks by PCI …

People

Rhonda Cabrinha, vice president of Ellis Moreland Ellis Inc. in Syracuse, New York, was named the Insurance Person of Distinction during the recent annual Syracuse I-Day event. Cabrinha rose through the ranks to become an owner of Ellis Moreland Ellis …

Mass. Weighs Requiring Residents to Purchase Health Insurance

While some parties still cling to hope the state will reform its mandatory auto insurance, Massachusetts’ political leaders have themselves been focused on making health insurance mandatory in the Commonwealth. Republican Gov. Mitt Romney and top Democrats hope to reduce …

Choice-less in Massachusetts Auto Insurance

You don’t have to look further than your television set to realize how little choice Massachusetts consumers have for auto insurance. The possibility of a slight auto insurance rate reduction next year doesn’t even address the systemic problems within our …

Business Moves

Berkshire Insurance Group Berkshire Insurance Group Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. in Pittsfield, Mass., acquired MacDonald & Johnson, Inc., a property and casualty insurance agency in East Longmeadow, Mass. and Onofrey Insurance and Financial Services Inc., …

Mass. House Advances Individual, Employer Health Coverage Mandate

The Massachusetts House of Representatives has approved an ambitious health care initiative designed to extend insurance coverage to nearly all the roughly half-million Massachusetts residents who now lack it. The next step is for the Senate to vote on its …

News Briefs

MASSACHUSETTS Sprinkler Opposition: Dozens of Massachusetts restaurants and private clubs are appealing a state mandate in that they install sprinkler systems, arguing that they are being misclassified as nightclubs. The Legislature last year passed a law requiring any club with …

PCI Meeting Focuses on Reform of “Flawed” Regulatory System

Regulatory reform, terrorism insurance and the eventual impact of record-breaking natural disasters were the main topics of discussion at the annual meeting of the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, held in Chicago last month. In opening remarks by PCI …

Business, Republicans, Even Democrats Sorry to See Oxley Go

Republican Rep. Mike Oxley announced this week that he will retire, depriving Congress of one of its most powerful champions for corporate oversight and insurance protection. His departure at the end of his term in January 2007 isn’t likely to …