Latest Massachusetts Headlines

All the headlines from our Massachusetts Topic Page, ordered by recency.

$81M Punitive Damages in Massachusetts Cigarette Case

Dec 21 2010 // A tobacco company that had tried to hook black children on cigarettes was ordered to pay $81 million in punitive damages to the estate and son of a Boston woman who started smoking at age 13, in what an attorney said is...

Massachusetts Couple Gets $2M in Malpractice Suit

Dec 17 2010 // A jury has ruled in favor of a Massachusetts couple and awarded them nearly $2 million in a medical malpractice suit they brought against St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester.Laura Ginisi claimed in the suit that misdiagnosis...

Massachusetts Jury Orders Tobacco Firm to Pay $71 Million to Family

Dec 15 2010 // A jury Tuesday ordered U.S. cigarette maker Lorillard Inc. to pay damages to a dead smoker’s family for allegedly enticing the woman and other black children with free cigarettes given out decades ago.Evans vs...

Senators Urge Bipartisan State Healthcare Waiver

Nov 19 2010 // A Democrat and a Republican teamed up in the U.S. Senate Thursday to offer legislation that would give states the flexibility to implement their own healthcare approaches when the federal overhaul goes into full effect in...

Massachusetts Falls Short Fighting Drunken Driving

Nov 17 2010 // The National Transportation Safety Board is faulting Massachusetts for not doing enough to combat what they call “hardcore” drunken drivers.The NTSB said Massachusetts is among 10 states in the country that...

Massachusetts Revises Workers’ Comp Paperwork Snafu

Nov 14 2010 // Bowing to pressure from insurers and agent groups, Massachusetts safety regulators have eased new workers’ comp paperwork requirements for some out-of-state contractors.At issue is a form used by inspectors to verify...

Massachusetts Revises Workers’ Comp Paperwork Snafu

Nov 5 2010 // Bowing to pressure from insurers and agent groups, Massachusetts safety regulators have eased new, workers’ comp paperwork requirements for some out-of-state contractors.At issue is a form used by inspectors to...

Massachusetts Awards $653K in Training Money

Oct 29 2010 // Massachusetts has awarded $653,000 in grant money that will be used to provide safety training to nearly 11,000 workers in the state. The money will go to 62 organizations across the state, according to the Department of...

Massachusetts Prison Guard Accused of Workers’ Comp Fraud

Oct 29 2010 // A former Massachusetts prison guard has pleaded not guilty to charges that he ran long-distance races while collecting worker’s compensation for an on-the-job injury he said made it impossible to do strenuous...

Massachusetts Town Settles Discrimination Suit for $1M

Oct 28 2010 // The town of Framingham has agreed to pay $1 million to settle a discrimination lawsuit filed by a social services agency that wanted to open a home for recovering drug addicts in town.The South Middlesex Opportunity...

Safety Begins Refunds for Massachusetts Motorcyclists

Oct 18 2010 // Safety Insurance has begun refunding a total $7.2 million to roughly 21,000 of its Massachusetts policyholders who were overcharged for motorcycle insurance, according to the state’s attorney general.The refunds are...

Out-of-State Agents Blast Massachusetts Paperwork Requirement

Oct 18 2010 // A trade group for agents in several Northeast states are urging Massachusetts regulators to shelf new paperwork requirements for out-of-state businesses’ workers’ comp coverage.Massachusetts Division of...

Five More Massachusetts Insurers Reach Motorcycle Settlements

Oct 12 2010 // Five more insurers have reached settlements with the state of Massachusetts over allegations they charged inflated premiums for motorcycle insurance, the state’ attorney general said.The latest settlements with...

Florida Medical Malpractice Insurance Market Found in Good Health

Oct 6 2010 // Medical malpractice insurers writing in Florida earned an average return on surplus of 6.6 percent in 2009, their sixth straight profitable year, although their profits were lower than in 2008.That’s one of the news...

Out-of-State Agents Blast Massachusetts Paperwork Requirement

Oct 4 2010 // A trade group for agents in several Northeast states are urging Massachusetts regulators to rethink new paperwork requirements for out-of-state businesses’ workers’ comp coverage.Massachusetts Division of...

Suit Settled over Shock Therapy Use at Massachusetts School

Oct 4 2010 // The family of a former Massachusetts student who received electric shock treatments at a special needs school has agreed to receive $65,000 to settle a lawsuit claiming the treatment was inhumane and violated his civil...

Business Moves

Oct 4 2010 // Markel, HiscoxInsurer Markel has acquired the rights to American Live Stock, the animal mortality business of Hiscox Insurance Co. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The transaction, which includes the rights to the...

Massachusetts Woman Pleads Guilty in Glass-Eating Scheme

Sep 30 2010 // A Massachusetts woman admits that she and her husband intentionally ate glass particles, then submitted false insurance claims.Mary Evano pleaded guilty Tuesday to a 23-count indictment charging her with fraud, conspiracy...

Safety Begins Refunds for Massachusetts Motorcyclists

Sep 29 2010 // Safety Insurance has begun refunding a total $7.2 million to roughly 21,000 Massachusetts policyholders who were overcharged for motorcycle insurance, according to the state’s attorney general.The refunds are part of...

Suit Settled over Shock Therapy at Massachusetts School

Sep 17 2010 // The family of a former Massachusetts student who received electric shocks at a special needs school has agreed to receive $65,000 to settle a lawsuit claiming the treatment was inhumane and violated the student’s...