Category: Political News

The political arena is ripe with news from the insurance industry – 2012 being a presidential election year, as well as other changes, have made for one of the hottest news topics we have.

Three South Carolina state agencies form insurance fraud task force

H. Cutner
Insurance fraud - task force

The Attorney General’s Office, the Department of Insurance, and SLED are working together. Insurance fraud in South Carolina has reached the point that three state agencies – the Attorney General’s Office, the Department of Insurance, and SLED – have come together to create a task force for the purpose of cracking down on cases. South Carolina has the 17th highest rate of complaints regarding fraudulent claims in the US. National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) data shows that South Carolina is in 17th place in the country for the amount of…

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Unemployed Americans to receive health insurance coverage among stimulus benefits

G. Turner
Health insurance coverage - Stethoscope and hand

Beyond the $1,400 check and child tax credit payments, the America Rescue Plan includes health care. The American Rescue Plan has extended health insurance coverage to people who qualified for unemployment assistance in 2021. The low-cost and no-cost health care plans became available at the start of this month. The health insurance coverage, beyond the $1,400 stimulus checks and the monthly child tax credit payments are available for individuals who qualified for unemployment assistance. According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) the plans became available at the…

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State Farm accused of discrimination, retaliation and racism

Logan B.
State Farm - Image of Sate Farm Arena

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has referred the insurer to its legal unit, said a report. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has referred insurance company State Farm to its legal unit in the face of accusations of discrimination, retaliation and racism, said a WGLT.org report. The insurer has been advised that it faces possible prosecution in this case. According to the WGLT report, the first National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Vice President Carla Campbell-Jackson from the Bloomington-Normal chapter in Illinois has filed the discrimination allegations…

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Governor DeSantis signs overhaul of Florida homeowners insurance law

G. Turner
Florida homeowners insurance - Homes in Florida

Insurers are hopeful that this could help to ease losses but say more changes are still needed. Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed a Florida homeowners insurance overhaul into law. This will change many of the regulations regarding property coverage. Starting in July, the state will launch efforts to halt contractors pushing policyholders to add repairs. The legislation is meant to help stop contractors from pressuring policyholders from approving unnecessary repairs that will then be charged to Florida homeowners insurance companies. Moreover, it will also limit the capacity of adjustors to…

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UN Secretary General Guterres warns of insurance industry “race against time”

Marc
Insurance industry - climate change - time

A plea for action was made during the virtual Insurance Development forum closing remarks. In UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ closing remarks at the Insurance Development Forum held virtually earlier this week, he asserted that the insurance industry is in a “race against time” to make the adaptations necessary for adapting to the speed of climate change. As the climate continues to change rapidly, the risks are altering their shape, size, and frequency. According to Guterres, carbon neutrality worldwide must be achieved within the next thirty years, global finance needs to…

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Low-income Americans to receive flood insurance cost support

Marc
Flood insurance cost - umbrella covering dollar sign

The Biden administration’s budget includes a plan for helping people to purchase the coverage. As the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) works to overhaul the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), the President Biden is seeking to bring down the flood insurance cost for low-income Americans. The budget proposes a new program that would provide $358 million to support the effort next year. That money would help low-income families to cover their flood insurance cost and to take additional action to prevent their properties from flooding. This new program was a…

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The California Unemployment Insurance Fund will be over $24B in debt this year

G. Turner
California unemployment insurance - Debit - calculator - budget

The COVID-19 pandemic caused job losses causing the state to fall deep in debt to the federal government. The California Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) has racked up a substantial debt to the federal government in its efforts to support residents who lost their jobs throughout the pandemic. The revised 2021-22 budget published by Governor Gavin Newsom made reference to the debt. A paragraph in the revised budget on page 180 pointed to the challenge the state now faces regarding its California unemployment insurance fund’s debt. To support Californians who lost…

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