Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Tuesday, June 12

Click on a headline to read the complete story:

Education Cuts Scuttle Support For Tax Proposal

TALLAHASSEE – He said he was reluctant to “rain on this parade,” but state Sen. Steven Geller did just that Monday in vowing that he and his Democratic colleagues would not support a $31.6 billion property tax overhaul that includes steep cuts in education funding.

 

KidCare changes, no-fault insurance not on special session agenda

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Changes to the state’s subsidized health insurance program for children and continuation of the no-fault auto insurance system likely won’t be taken up by lawmakers in the special session that began Tuesday, the governor and legislative leaders said.

 

Save Our Homes revamp in trouble

TALLAHASSEE — A proposal to revamp the popular Save Our Homes benefit for primary homeowners could face trouble as the Legislature begins a special session today on a multi-billion-dollar tax-relief plan.

 

Crist signs bill to extend Citizens rate freeze

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A bill extending a rate freeze for customers of Citizens Property Insurance Corp. and factoring in national profits when setting premiums for other insurance companies became law Monday with Gov. Charlie Crist’s signature.

 

Florida Democrats back Jan. 29 primary

MIAMI, Fla. — Florida Democrats have embraced an early primary on Jan. 29 despite the national party’s threat to penalize them by taking away half their delegates to the national convention.

 

Commissioner Hails Supreme Court Decision On Credit Scoring

TALLAHASSEE (06/12/2007) – Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty hailed the United States Supreme Court’s recent ruling on insurers’ use of credit scoring.  The litigation involved two national auto insurers, Safeco Insurance Company of America, and GEICO General Insurance Company.  The case alleged that insurers used credit reports and took “adverse action” on policyholders without giving proper notice.

 
Hood Suing State Farm In Miss. For Bad Faith

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood announced today he was suing State Farm Fire and Casualty Company for breach of contract and bad faith over a failed January settlement agreement concerning coastal resident’s Hurricane Katrina claims. 

 

Sink seeks inspection fix

Homeowners who get a free hurricane-readiness inspection from the state right now have to pay a private contractor to redo the study if they want to qualify for premium discounts from their insurer.

 

OP-ED:  Legislators must not revisit no-fault repeal

Taxpayers have a lot riding on the special session of the Florida Legislature that opens today in Tallahassee (“Tax reform faces snags,” Sunday). If all goes well, taxpayers soon will benefit from savings on both their property taxes and auto insurance costs. As the focus of the special session, property-tax relief in some form is all but guaranteed; however, for auto insurance savings to become a reality, legislators must continue to stand strong for consumers and abolish the “no-fault tax.”

 

Letter to the Editor:  No-fault system deserves to die

Re: “PIP should be added to special session” (letter, June 5).

The Association of Independent Health Care Providers hired Tallahassee media pro Rick Oppenheim to help keep Florida’s no-fault (PIP) system in place.

 

Suzan Franks puts her faith in state workers

Democratic Party leaders rallied behind state Senate candidate Suzan Franks Monday, hoping that state-employee resentment of the Republican legislative record can overcome GOP advantages in money and organization for the June 26 special election.

 

Carlyle Group Forms Investment Unit

Carlyle Group started a unit led by former executives at Mercantile Bankshares and Hartford Financial Services Group to invest in banks and insurers. Edward Kelly, who was Mercantile’s chief executive until its sale to PNC Financial Services Group earlier this year, and David K. Zwiener, a former president of Hartford’s property-and-casualty insurance arm, will join Carlyle as managing directors, the District firm said.

 

Keep Close Eye On Brokers, Public RMs Advised

BOSTON —Public risk managers responsible to taxpayers need to take extra precautions when it comes to broker transparency, Katherine M. Peeling, outgoing president of the Public Risk Management Association (PRIMA), said in an interview.

 

Marsh & McLennan Blasts N.Y. Post Criticism of Ad Photos

Marsh & McLennan Companies has vigorously defended its use of photographs in a recent ad campaign against the suggestion by a New York newspaper that they contain images of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center.

 

Private Insurance May Help in Earlier Cancer Detection

MONDAY, June 11 (HealthDay News) — Uninsured Americans or those with certain types of public health insurance are more likely to have oral or breast cancer diagnosed at an advanced stage, compared to people with private insurance whose disease is caught earlier.

 

Governor Rendell Nominates Joel Ario to Serve As Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner

HARRISBURG, Pa., June 12 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Governor Edward G. Rendell today nominated Joel Scott Ario, the chief insurance regulator for the state of Oregon and an experienced consumer advocate, to serve as Pennsylvania’s insurance commissioner.

 

Simmering doctor-lawyer feud hits boiling point in suits

Being labeled a P.I.M.P. for the insurance industry by Palm Beach County trial lawyers didn’t sit well with Dr. Michael Zeide.

Grabbing a weapon from the lawyers’ arsenal, the orthopedic surgeon sued the Palm Beach County Justice Association, accusing the group of trying to ruin his reputation.

 

Health Care Bids Sought Despite Blue Cross’ Pitch

Even though Blue Cross officials dangled a smaller rate increase in front of them, county commissioners last week decided to move forward on bids for alternative health insurance coverage for county employees.

 

Manatee emergency ops center impresses: FEMA official, Vern Buchanan say facility among top in Florida

The paint was still wet on the walls of Manatee County’s new $55 million emergency operations center as U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Sarasota, toured the facility Monday with Scott Morris, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Long-term Recovery Office in Florida.

 

List helps fight post-hurricane price gouging

A $4 bottle of water at a sporting event can seem like a bargain after a hurricane.
But if chaos strikes this hurricane season, local consumer advocates have prepared for consumers a reference list of reasonable prices so they’ll be cognizant of potential price gouging.

 

Storms, rivals hurt Tenet; profits slide at HCA

Tenet Healthcare Corp.’s five Palm Beach County hospitals took a turn for the worse financially in 2006, as its facilities were battered by the lingering effects of Hurricane Wilma and new competition for lucrative open-heart surgery patients.