Latest COVID-19 Headlines

All the headlines from our COVID-19 Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Pandemic Brought Surge in Illegal Street Racing Across U.S.

Feb 24 2022 // Jaye Sanford, a 52-year-old mother of two, was driving home in suburban Atlanta on Nov. 21 when a man in a Dodge Challenger muscle car who was allegedly street racing crashed into her head-on, killing her.She is one of the...

Munich Re Forecasts 14% Jump in 2022 Profit as It Reports Bounceback From Pandemic

Feb 23 2022 // German reinsurance group Munich Re on Wednesday forecast a 14% jump in profit this year as it reported a bounceback in 2021 from the coronavirus pandemic despite big claims from natural disasters.Marked by devastating...

COVID Underscores Lack of Whistleblower Protections

Feb 22 2022 // Originally posted on Stateline, an initiative of The Pew Charitable Trusts.Inside a partially completed Amazon warehouse here, workers last summer walked on conveyor belts four stories high without safety harnesses,...

California Becomes First State to Adopt ‘Endemic’ Virus Policy

Feb 22 2022 // California became the first state to formally shift to an “endemic” approach to the coronavirus with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s announcement of a plan that emphasizes prevention and quick reaction to outbreaks...

Washington Businesses Fined After 250 Workers Contract Virus in Same Warehouse

Feb 21 2022 // Three Washington businesses were fined after workers housed in Thurston County hotels and employed at a Lewis County distribution center got sick with COVID-19, and then walked to the hospital for help and feared they...

Global Insurance M&A Rises in 2021, Despite Pandemic Pressures: Clyde & Co. Report

Feb 15 2022 // There were 418 completed mergers and acquisitions (M&A) worldwide in the insurance sector in 2021, up from 407 the previous year, according to a report published by law firm Clyde & Co.Activity was driven by a...

Washington Businesses Fined After 250 Workers Contract Virus in Same Warehouse

Feb 11 2022 // Three Washington businesses were fined after workers housed in Thurston County hotels and employed at a Lewis County distribution center got sick with COVID-19, and then walked to the hospital for help and feared they...

3 Keys to Avoiding Employment Practices Issues Related to COVID

Feb 8 2022 // Last week, the Academy of Insurance hosted a class on the EPLI (Employment Practices Liability Insurance) implications of employers’ policies related to COVID-19. The COVID-19 pandemic response around the world...

COVID-19 Cases Are Dropping, but Many UK Employees Still Opt to Work From Home

Feb 8 2022 // With pandemic restrictions in the UK largely gone, offices are getting busier. Yet vast numbers of desks still remain empty.Even with COVID-19 case numbers flat or falling in the UK, U.S. and much of Europe, many employees...

Idaho Coronavirus Liability Shield Extension Bill Heads to Senate

Feb 3 2022 // Legislation headed to the Idaho Senate on Monday to extend a legal shield for Idaho businesses, schools and government entities from lawsuits if someone catches COVID-19.The House voted 70-0 to approve the measure that for...

UK Business Closures Jump 14% as Pandemic Takes Brutal Toll on Small Firms

Jan 27 2022 // Business closures in the UK jumped by 14% from a year ago in the fourth quarter as the coronavirus pandemic took a brutal toll.Almost every industrial group saw the number of closures rise, with the transport and storage...

Owners of High-End London Restaurants Sue AXA Over Failure to Pay COVID Claims

Jan 26 2022 // The owners of high-end London restaurants The Wolseley and The Delaunay sued AXA Insurance UK Plc for as much as 4 million pounds ($5.4 million) over its failure to pay out on claims linked to the coronavirus...

Sarah Palin’s Positive COVID Test Delays New York Times Defamation Trial

Jan 24 2022 // Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican U.S. vice presidential candidate and former Alaska governor, has tested positive for the coronavirus, forcing a U.S. judge on Monday to delay her defamation trial against The New York...

Employers Fear Long-Term Liability From ‘Take-Home’ COVID-19 Lawsuits

Jan 24 2022 // As COVID-19 cases surge in the United States, businesses say they fear a California court ruling has increased the likelihood that companies will be sued for infections, even by people who are not employees or...

Kansas High Court Keeps Law Allowing COVID Lawsuits Alive

Jan 24 2022 // Kansas’ highest court ruled on Jan. 7 to keep intact a law that allows people to sue counties over mask mandates and other COVID-19 restrictions and obtain quick trial-court decisions.The Kansas Supreme Court...

People Should Get Back to Office, Learn to Live With Coronavirus: UK Business Minister

Jan 21 2022 // People should get back to the office to benefit from in-person collaboration because the world must learn to live with the coronavirus after a pandemic that has wiped trillions of dollars off global output, Britain’s...

COVID-19 Cases, Deaths on Rise Again at Nursing Homes

Jan 18 2022 // COVID-19 infections are soaring again at U.S. nursing homes because of the omicron wave, and deaths are climbing too, leading to new restrictions on family visits and a renewed push to get more residents and staff members...

Businesses, Labor Take Stock After Supreme Court Tosses Biden Covid-19 Rule

Jan 18 2022 // For companies that were waiting to hear from the U.S. Supreme Court before deciding whether to require vaccinations or regular coronavirus testing for workers, the next move is up to them.Many large corporations were...

Maryland Confirms Ransomware Attack Disrupted Agency Reporting COVID-19 Data

Jan 18 2022 // The disruption of Maryland’s reporting of COVID-19 data last month was caused by a ransomware attack, state officials said Wednesday.Chip Stewart, the state’s chief information security officer, said the state...

Credit Suisse Plunged Into Chaos After Chairman Ousted for Breaching COVID Rules

Jan 17 2022 // The banker tasked with fixing Credit Suisse Group AG was ousted just nine months into the job for breaching COVID quarantine rules, throwing the Swiss financial giant into fresh turmoil as it struggles to emerge from a...