Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Monday, May 7

Crist to insurers: Want to leave the state? Go ahead

TALLAHASSEE — At the conclusion of his first legislative session as governor, Charlie Crist declared its work as the “nail in the coffin” of Florida’s insurance industry.

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.pensacolanewsjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070507/NEWS01/705070324/1006#

 

 

Governor Crist Commends Legislature’s Efforts To Continue Property Insurance Reform

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.flgov.com/release/8961

 

 

Insurer’s own high profits are that industry’s ‘nail in the coffin’

At the conclusion of his first legislative session as governor, Charlie Crist declared its work as the ”nail in the coffin” of Florida’s insurance industry.

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.tallahassee.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070507/CAPITOLNEWS/705070319/1010/NEWS01&template=printart

 

 

Complexity, philosophy thwarted property tax relief

Gov. Charlie Crist insisted throughout Florida’s 2007 legislative session that local property taxes must “drop like a rock.”

When the 60-day session ended Friday without a tax cut, Senate President Ken Pruitt handed Crist a gray rock about the size and shape, appropriately enough, of a goose egg inscribed with the word “patience.”

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070505/APN/705051364

 

 

Report: U.S. To Subpoena Allstate, Other Insurers in Katrina Probe

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security intends to subpoena Allstate Corp. and other insurance companies as part of an investigation into Hurricane Katrina claims, the company said last week.

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2007/05/07/79475.htm

 

 

Big money to insure children wasted

State’s low enrollment, federal rules play role

Florida is the third worst state in the country in its number of uninsured children, and the federal money that could help insure them is going to waste.

An analysis by the Children’s Campaign Inc., a Tallahassee-based advocacy group, found that Florida has forfeited $139 million in federal dollars since 1998 because it hasn’t put forward its mandated contribution and, more recently, because it hasn’t enrolled enough children to warrant the spending.

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070507/NEWS01/705070359/1002/NEWS01

 

 

Long-Term Care Insurance A Tough Sell

WASHINGTON – Most Americans prefer to gamble that they won’t be bedridden or senile in old age, so insurance to cover future long-term care needs is a tough sell.

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070507/NEWS/705070366/1004

 

 

County-state tax spat puts rift between GOP leaders

The looming Tallahassee-imposed shutdown of the all-you-can-consume property tax revenue buffet for local governments has polarized two of southern Palm Beach County’s biggest-name Republicans.

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.palmbeachpost.com/pbcsouth/content/local_news/epaper/2007/05/07/s1b_geo_col_0507.html

 

 

Officials: Insurers’ Pitches Include Improper Tactics

WASHINGTON – Insurance companies have used improper hard-sell tactics to persuade Medicare recipients to sign up for private health plans that cost the government far more than the traditional Medicare program, federal and state officials and consumer advocates say.

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.tbo.com/news/metro/MGBY019EE1F.html

 

 

Deadly insurance fraud case nears trial

When Basdeo Somaipersaud’s body was found in his favorite park in 1998, his family assumed he cracked his head during one of his drinking binges. But an autopsy detected small puncture wounds on his torso, and a sedative sometimes used to treat schizophrenia in his system.

Authorities now say Somaipersaud was injected with lethal doses of the sedative chlorpormazine while he was in a defenseless, drunken stupor – and then his killers tried to cash in on his life insurance policy.

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.miamiherald.com/772/story/98994.html

 

 

Ky. Derby Jockeys, Others Would Get Coverage under Proposal

U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield, a Republican from the 1st District of Kentucky, where the racing industry was focused on the Kentucky Derby, said the dangers of horse racing should not be ignored.

The complete story can be found at:  http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southeast/2007/05/07/79457.htm

 

 

Liberty Mutual to Acquire Ohio Casualty for $2.7 Billion

Boston-based Liberty Mutual Group has agreed to buy Ohio Casualty Corp. of Fairfield, Ohio, in a transaction valued at approximately $2.7 billion. Liberty Mutual will acquire all outstanding shares of common stock of Ohio Casualty for $44.00 per share in cash.

The complete story can be found at:   http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2007/05/07/79471.htm