Capitol to Courthouse Florida Insurance Report: Wednesday, December 19
Dec 19, 2012
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
9:30 a.m.–Florida Office of Insurance Regulation Rule Development Workshop. Proposed amendments to Rule 69O-137.004, “Report of Information by Health Insurers Required,” would update and revise the Gross Annual Premium Report form (OIR-B2-1094). To view the workshop notice, click here.
10:00 a.m.–Florida Board of Employee Leasing Companies Board meeting. Teleconference: 888-670-3525; participant code: 7489217568#. To view the meeting notice, click here.
Editorial: Citizens pulls plug on foolish loan plan
Citizens Property Insurance Corp. finally has gotten the message about its sweetheart loan plan for private insurers.
Former Hillsborough Commissioner Kevin White sues county’s insurance company for bad faith
Former Hillsborough Commissioner Kevin White, who is in prison on bribery charges, is suing the county’s insurance agencies.
WFTV Channel 9 Investigates Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund
This year’s hurricane season may be over, but many Floridians continue to pay for the damage caused by storms that ravaged the state seven and eight years ago, 9 Investigative reporter George Spencer found.
Editorial: Inspecting Citizens
Gov. Rick Scott should be applauded for keeping the heat on Citizens Property Insurance Corp. Scott last week said he believes Florida’s largest insurer should have its own inspector general, just as other government agencies do, to ensure the state-backed company is properly managed.
Praetorian Offers to Lower Florida Forced-Placement Rates by 18.8%
A forced placement mortgage property insurer providing coverage in Florida has offered to lower its rates by an average of 18.8 percent, despite the fact that state regulators said the rate decrease should be double that amount.
Miami-Dade owner of mental health chain pleads guilty to stealing millions from Medicare
A Miami-area businessman who exported his mental health chain to North Carolina pleaded guilty to fleecing tens of millions of dollars from the taxpayer-funded Medicare program
Kept behind bars because of fears he might flee to Cuba, Armando “Manny” Gonzalez has pleaded guilty to stealing tens of millions of dollars from Medicare by fraudulently billing the taxpayer-funded program through a mental health chain in Miami-Dade and North Carolina.
Floridians Select Proposed License Plate Design
Floridians who voted in an online poll favor a new license plate design that features an orange forming the “O” in “Florida,” state motor vehicle officials said Tuesday.
Florida school threats spread after Connecticut massacre
Tampa Bay-area authorities say the Connecticut school massacre and doomsday scenarios based on the Mayan calendar have prompted a string of school threats that have overwhelmed deputies.
Florida Attorney General wants reporter to testify
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is jumping into the twisting criminal case against a former aide to Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll, asking that an appeals court force a newspaper reporter to testify for the prosecution.
A South Florida senator wants tighter regulations on political electioneering communication organizations. There are no limits on contributions to ECOs, which operate independent of candidates and pay for television commercials and mailers to promote a cause – usually with a negative attack ad.
Pro-Scott committee bankrolls $5 million for 2014
After collecting $100,000 from a firm backing resort casinos in south Florida, a political committee closely tied to Gov. Rick Scott has already raised more than $5 million as it prepares for the 2014 gubernatorial race.
Black Business loan fund takes jobs agency to court over certification
The Department of Economic Opportunity refused to certify the Black Business Investment Fund of Central Florida as a Black Business Investment Corporation — potentially denying it hundreds of thousands of dollars to loan to minority-owned businesses — because of a dispute over loan service fees.
Bad return address on Christmas cards from Gov. Rick Scott’s political committee
It is definitely not the Governor’s Mansion. There are no stately white columns on the modest house 3 miles east of the state Capitol.
New Jersey Regulators Offer Tips on Managing Settlement Process Post-Sandy
New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance Acting Commissioner Ken Kobylowski is offering advice to consumers in an effort to help explain the Sandy claims process.
Texas homeowners still paying nation’s highest insurance premiums
An industry group says Texas homeowners are paying the highest insurance premiums in the country. The report was released Tuesday by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
Telematics and the Battle for Market Share
It’s difficult to predict what the personal auto insurance market will look like by the turn of the next decade, but even conservative estimates indicate telematics and usage-based insurance (UBI) will become a catalyst for change, according to a recent Strategy Meets Action research paper.
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