Latest COVID-19 Headlines

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

Employment Practices Insurance in Age of COVID, Vaccines, Shutdowns and Hard Market

Mar 18 2021 // Overall trends for the past 30 years in the employment practices liability insurance market have been influenced by society and culture. As concerns over racial and disability discrimination, sexual harassment, gender...

EU Threatens to Ban COVID Vaccine Exports to Britain

Mar 18 2021 // BRUSSELS – The European Union threatened on Wednesday to ban exports of COVID-19 vaccines to Britain to safeguard scarce doses for its own citizens facing a third wave of the pandemic that would jeopardize plans to...

Passengers Recall COVID Deaths, Confusion, Quarantine Aboard Cruise Ships

Mar 17 2021 // SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The last vacation Margrit and Lucio Gonzalez took together began with an ominous delay: a medical emergency on the cruise ship they were set to board.After a four-hour wait, the couple of 51...

Oliver Wyman Predicts COVID Herd Immunity for U.S. by Mid-Summer

Mar 16 2021 // The U.S. will reach herd immunity threshold when more than 71% of the U.S. population has been exposed to COVID or effectively vaccinated against it, most likely by mid-summer, says a management consultant firm that has...

Florida Senate Weighs Legal Immunity Against COVID Lawsuits

Mar 16 2021 // A measure that would shield businesses from COVID-related lawsuits could make it before the Florida Senate later this week, providing another key test for a measure that supporters assert will protect against frivolous...

Kansas Businesses Hurt by COVID Closures Could Get Help Under Bills

Mar 15 2021 // Businesses that were ordered to shut down or limit capacity because of the pandemic could receive financial relief under two bills in the state Legislature that would address pending litigation but have riled up county...

OSHA to Review COVID-19 Workplace Safety Enforcement Under Trump

Mar 15 2021 // Federal workplace safety regulators said on Friday they will revisit several COVID-19 related safety investigations performed during the Trump administration as part of a wider effort to better protect workers from the...

P/C Insurers Improved Profitability in Year of Coronavirus: AM Best

Mar 12 2021 // Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. property/casualty (P/C) industry improved its overall profitability in 2020, with a 68% increase in net underwriting income and combined ratio that improved slightly over the...

Transactional Risk Insurance Hits Record High Despite Pandemic: Marsh

Mar 12 2021 // After a dramatic downturn in the second quarter of 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, merger and acquisition (M&A) deal volume soared to record highs in the second half of the year. This was mirrored in growth of...

California Commissioner Says Insurers Overcharged Drivers During Pandemic

Mar 11 2021 // Insurers in California continued to overcharge drivers despite reduced risk of accidents during the pandemic, according to a report released today by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara.Lara ordered auto insurance...

Insurers Face Disputes with Their Reinsurers over UK COVID-19 Business Income Claims

Mar 11 2021 // Top insurance companies, ordered by Britain’s highest court to pay thousands of small businesses millions of pounds in claims for COVID-19 disruption, are facing a battle with reinsurers over who should foot the...

Total Pandemic Losses for P/C Insurers Will Take Years to Determine: Fitch

Mar 10 2021 // Incurred pandemic losses for U.S. property/casualty insurers increased only modestly in fourth quarter of 2020 from earlier quarters in the year. Still, the amount of ultimate losses remains unclear and will take several...

Florida House Approves COVID Liability Shield for Businesses

Mar 9 2021 // Florida businesses would be protected from coronavirus lawsuits if they made a good effort to follow guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19 under a bill passed by the House on Friday.The House also passed a bill that...

The 2021 Insurance Landscape for Surgeons in the Wake of COVID-19

Mar 8 2021 // This year is looking to be one of changes and big possibilities for surgeons. While 2020 brought declines in surgical revenue and drops in patient intake, the COVID-19 pandemic caused a paradigm shift. Adaptations and...

Multidistrict COVID Business Interruption Case Against Society Insurance Advances

Mar 8 2021 // A federal judge in Chicago has denied Society Insurance’s motions to dismiss three “bellwether” lawsuits filed by hospitality businesses that were denied coverage for revenue lost because of COVID-19...

COVID-19 Liability Shield Bill Signed by Indiana Governor

Mar 8 2021 // Indiana businesses and others now have broad protections from lawsuits by people blaming them for contracting COVID-19 under a new state law.Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb on Feb. 18 signed the bill that he and GOP lawmakers...

Serving the Changing Needs of Small Business Post-Pandemic

Mar 8 2021 // Among the many changes wrought by the pandemic are those transforming the small business workforce. People have lost their jobs or businesses, with many starting new ventures, working from home or adopting new technologies...

Judge Permits Suit Alleging Geico Overcharged Drivers During Pandemic

Mar 7 2021 // The auto insurer Geico Corp., a unit of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., must face a proposed class action claiming it overcharged policyholders as the coronavirus pandemic led to less driving and fewer...

Some Insurers Strengthening Virus Exclusion Language in Policies After COVID Cases

Mar 5 2021 // U.S. insurers are strengthening language in policies that cover business losses to protect them from future claims related to the coronavirus pandemic or other widespread illnesses that disrupt operations, industry sources...

Insurer Aviva Seeks New London Headquarters to Cut Post-Pandemic Office Footprint

Mar 5 2021 // Aviva Plc is searching for a new City of London headquarters as the UK insurer prepares to slash its office footprint.The firm started looking for new offices in the financial district early last year, but shelved its...