Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Tuesday, Sept. 18

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No-fault insurance talks gain momentum

Talks gained momentum in Tallahassee Monday on ways to preserve and reform Florida’s no-fault auto insurance system before it expires in October.

As talks continued in Tallahassee Monday on ways to reform Florida’s controversial no-fault auto insurance law, agreement is emerging on capping fees for medical care after an auto accident.

 

Lawmakers urged to act on no-fault auto coverage

TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Charlie Crist’s staff and state Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink stepped up pressure on lawmakers Monday to either resurrect or reform Florida’s no-fault automobile insurance before it disappears Oct. 1.

 

SEC Pressed to Require Climate-Risk Disclosures

One of the industries considered most vulnerable to climate change is the insurance industry, with shifting weather patterns threatening property in the nation’s most hurricane-prone areas.

 

Veto Threat for Terror Insurance

WASHINGTON — The White House threatened Monday to veto a bill that would add 15 years to a post-Sept. 11 government insurance program which supporters say is critical for major projects like the new World Trade Center.

 

Leadership needed

Our position: Gov. Crist should step in to work out deal on no-fault insurance.

Florida’s personal-injury-protection law is looking a lot like a patient left to die because the attending physicians can’t agree on how to treat him, and the administrator on call is out to lunch.

 

Reinsures Hazard Big Money Outside Monaco Casino

MONACO (Reuters) – The annual gathering of the global reinsurance industry in Monaco is an arcane, 50-year-old ritual of lavish parties and secret tete-a-tetes where the industry negotiates renewal contracts for the coming year.

 

Louisiana to buy 19,000 ruined homes

NEW ORLEANS — Areas of Louisiana devastated by Hurricane Katrina could remain deserted as the state acquires nearly 19,000 storm-damaged homes in the nation’s biggest post-disaster buyout, a USA TODAY analysis shows.

 

Suit challenges state voting law

Rights groups say Florida can make it too hard for some to vote.

TALLAHASSEE – Voting rights groups representing African-Americans and Haitians sued the state Monday, challenging a law they say puts unfair barriers on people who register to vote.

 

Sinkhole ad gets attention

But the notice may be more than intended. Two lawmakers call for an investigation.

An ad in Sunday’s editions of the Pasco and Hernando Times warning homeowners about changes in sinkhole coverage tells them to file insurance claims “even if you do not believe that you have a sinkhole problem.”

 

Storm Program Is Clouded By Missteps

TAMPA – From the get-go, Jim Agnew’s foray into the My Safe Florida Home inspection program was peppered with problems.

 

Crist talks up new tax plan

Worries about the amendment cutting into local services are “overblown,” he insists.

TAMPA – With polls showing waning support for the super homestead exemption, Gov. Charlie Crist visited a Tampa woman’s home Monday to trumpet his support for a new campaign to convince Floridians to vote for it.

 

Rep. Allen seeks trial delay

An attorney for Rep. Bob Allen will ask a judge today to postpone the legislator’s trial on a charge of soliciting a sex act in a public-park bathroom.

 

Governors Push for Insurance Change

New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger lobbied the Bush administration Monday to roll back rule changes that limited the scope of a popular children’s health insurance program.

 

Merck sued for Medicaid fraud

The state and city sued Merck & Co. Inc. on Monday, accusing the drugmaker of defrauding Medicaid and other government insurance programs by hiding the risks of heart problems associated with its pain medication Vioxx.

 

Helmet law, Part 2:  Time to rethink the bareheaded rider

Call it a no-brainer: The National Transportation Safety Board says motorcycle helmets should be mandatory.

 

Court asked to clarify borrowing decision

The Florida Supreme Court was asked Monday to reconsider, or at least clarify, its landmark reversal earlier this month that changes and clouds how local governments borrow money.

 

Preparing For The Worst

There is no crying in baseball, and there are no “sick days” when you run your own business.

 

Insurance clouds future of social hub

The 300-member Senior Citizens Club can’t afford its hall’s premiums.

SPRING HILL – Spikes in property insurance rates have members of the Senior Citizens Club of Hernando County worrying that their beloved afternoon card games and line dancing may not go on much longer.