Capitol to Courthouse Florida Insurance Report: Thursday, May 9
May 9, 2013
To go directly to the section of your choice, click on a hyperlink below. Other hyperlinks to meeting information, bills and news are noted in bold type.
Daily Florida Insurance-Related Events
10:30 a.m.–Florida Division of Insurance Agent and Agency Services Proposed Rule Hearing. To view the hearing notice, click here. Proposed changes would update the following Rules relating to insurance adjusters and incorporate legislative changes to Part VI of Ch. 626, F.S.:
- Proposed amendments to Rule 69B-220.051, “Conduct of Public Adjusters,” would clarify the responsibilities and requirements of public adjusters and public adjuster apprentices, define the terms “direct supervision” and “adjusting services,” specify the terms and conditions of public adjuster contracts, require the license number on advertisements, delete provisions that reiterate or paraphrase statutory materials and prescribe practices to ensure fair dealing between public adjusters and claimants.
- Proposed changes to Rule 69B-220.201, “Ethical Requirements,” would update the code of ethics for all adjusters, delete provisions that reiterate or paraphrase statutory materials, and clarify the responsibilities and requirements of all adjusters.
Daily Florida Insurance-Related News
Surge, budgets focus of Governor’s Hurricane Conference
The unstable political atmosphere has generated a budget-cutting storm called sequestration, the impacts of which still remain uncertain on both hurricane forecasters and federal agencies that pick up the pieces after hurricanes, The Miami Herald’s Curtis Morgan reports from the Governor’s Hurricane Conference.
The Florida Current’s 2013 Session Summary: Insurance
Lawmakers stayed away from more strident reforms to the state’s insurance entities, as comprehensive changes to Citizens Property Insurance Corporation and the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund were watered down or blocked altogether, The Florida Current reports.
Universal Insurance Holdings income surges 21 percent
Universal Insurance Holdings, the owner of the largest private homeowners insurance company in Florida, enjoyed a 21 percent boost to its income in the first quarter, South Florida Business Journal’s Brian Bandell reports.
Experts recommend revamp of Florida trauma system
Parts of the overall structure of Florida’s trauma system were outdated, experts wrote in a report released this week. And, in what they called “the most striking challenge,” various players in the hospital industry are in long-running battles about where trauma centers should be allowed to open, reports THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Procedure charges vary widely among local hospitals, new data shows
The cost for common hospital procedures and treatments has long been an industry secret, and data released for the first time Wednesday by the federal government show why, Donna Koehn reports for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Florida Blue rebranding continues
While the rebranding of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida as Florida Blue on signage and the like is nearly complete, public awareness will probably take a few more years to catch up, Marilyn Bowden of Miami Today reports.
Florida presidential primary date moved
With a few sentences tucked into a 44-page elections bill during the frantic final hours of the Florida legislative session last week, Florida ended its eight-year battle with the national political parties over its early presidential primary, William March reports for the Tampa Tribune.
Florida Supreme Court asked to end political redistricting brawl
A months-long and tangled legal battle over political deal-making is headed to the Florida Supreme Court on Thursday, reports Gary Fineout for the Associated Press.
Foreclosures surge in Central Florida
The Ocala area had the second-highest rate of home foreclosures in the nation during April, with Orlando ranked close behind in fourth, according to a new report, Mary Shanklin reports for the Orlando Sentinel.
State Republican Party official Blaise Ingoglia will run for state House seat in Hernando
Blaise Ingoglia, vice chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, has filed to run for the state House of Representatives, Tampa Bay Times’ Tony Marrero reports.
Republican to Challenge Congressional Freshman Patrick Murphy
Republican Ellen Andel, the vice mayor pro tem for Juno Beach, announced Tuesday that she will challenge freshman Democratic Rep. Patrick Murphy in 2014, Roll Call’s Abby Livingston reports.
Budget Bolsters Florida Legislative Leaders’ Districts
Florida legislative leaders overseeing the state’s purse strings departed from the Capitol at the end of the legislative session with plenty for the folks back home, THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA’s Jim Turner reports.
The Florida Current’s 2013 Session Summary: Ethics and Elections
Legislators wanted to fix last year’s problems at the polls, improve their own ethical image. It took a while, but they got three big bills enacted, The Florida Current reports.
The Florida Current’s 2013 Session Summary: Law Enforcement and Justice
The Legislature took little action as far as regulating gun purchases or modify the “stand your ground” law, but it did ban texting while driving, passed an abortion bill and failed to pass a bill that would have banned the use of “foreign laws” in Florida courts, The Florida Current reports.
The Florida Current’s 2013 Session Summary: Utilities and Energy
Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam set the stage for low expectations by not offering recommendations for energy legislation, The Florida Current reports.
Blog: Photos, Video: Florida Cabinet on road tour again
Governor Rick Scott and his cabinet made one of their semi-regular road trips out of Tallahassee for a cabinet meeting, this time to Orlando’s Lake Nona, at the Nemours Children’s Hospital, Wednesday, Orlando Sentinel’s Joe Burbank reports.
RMS Announces New Real-Time Risk Model
RMS announced its new RMS(one) model, which provides customized real-time risk intelligence and analytics on a range of mobile devices, PropertyCasualty360.com reports.
State Farm Seeks New Trial Against Rigsbys in Katrina-Related Whistleblower Case
State Farm is seeking a new trial with two sisters, independent adjusters, who accused the insurer of defrauding the federal government following 2005’s Hurricane Katrina, PropertyCasualty360.com‘s Chad Hemenway reports.
New Georgia Law Limits Lobbyists’ Spending
Georgia Governor Nathan Deal has signed into law new limits on how much money lobbyists can spend while trying to influence public officials in Georgia. The legislation takes effect Jan. 1, Insurance Journal’s Ray Henry reports.
Fortune 500 list includes 46 insurers for 2012
While the number of overall insurers included in the Fortune 500 diminished slightly yet again-from 49 in 2010 to 47 last year to 46 this year-Nationwide provided insurers with one more top-100 slot by moving up 27 spots, reports Justin Stephani for Insurance Networking News.
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