Latest Oregon Headlines

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

Oregon Voters to Decide on Credit Scoring for Insurance

Sep 11 2006 // Insurance companies can use a person’s gender and age to determine what they pay for insurance. Oregon voters will decide in November if insurers should be able to use a person’s financial history too.In 2003,...

Kulongoski Floats Insurance Fee to Fund Oregon State Police

Sep 11 2006 // Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski has floated the idea of a state fee on car insurance policies to help put more Oregon State Police troopers on the state’s roads and highways.The Democratic governor also said he is halting...

Oregon Regulator: Credit Scoring, Other Issues Better Handled by States

Sep 5 2006 // When it comes to solving insurance issues, state insurance departments are better consumer protectors than the federal government, according to Oregon’s Insurance Administrator Joel Ario. While the federal government...

The Commissioners

Sep 4 2006 // Oregon’s Experience: Addressing credit scores, health care and disclosureInsurance Journal’s Andrew Simpson at a recent meeting of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Here are additional...

Joel Ario, Oregon, Insurance Administrator

Sep 4 2006 // When looking at credit scoring, the affordability and availability of health care, or even the construction liability market, states often are better-equipped than the federal government to address the issues, according to...

Industry on the Green

Aug 21 2006 // 1. The grand champion team PIA of Tennessee and the Tennessee 1752 Club. Left to right: Mike Huff, Robins Insurance Agency in Nashville; Mark Gatliff, Chubb Group, Nashville; Steve James and Joe Waldron, also of Robins...

Oregon Offers Insurance Wildfire Summit Workshops

Aug 1 2006 // The Oregon Department of Forestry and Oregon Office of State Fire Marshall, in partnership with Allstate and State Farm, is hosting Insurance Wildfire Summit workshops. Sessions will be held from 8:15 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. on...

Oregon Adopts Rules to Implement Mental Health Parity Bill

Jul 25 2006 // Oregon’s Department of Consumer and Business Services has adopted administrative rules to implement the mental health parity bill passed by the 2005 Oregon Legislature. The rules were filed with the Secretary of...

Oregon Plans More Work on Highway Flooded in Dike Failure

Jul 19 2006 // It will cost $3 million to prevent more flooding on an Oregon highway damaged last month when a dike failed, state officials say.Oregon 140, which links Klamath Falls with Medford, was closed a week after the Geary Canal...

Air Show Plane Crashes into Oregon Home, Killing Pilot

Jul 18 2006 // Federal aviation officials launched an investigation Monday into the cause of this weekend’s deadly plane crash in Oregon, which killed a pilot who had just taken off from the Hillsboro Air Show when his...

Oregon Activitst Tries to Prohibit Insurers from Raising Rates

Jul 18 2006 // Sidelined for the past four years because of legal troubles brought on by a racketeering lawsuit, Oregon’s most prolific initiative author — Bill Sizemore — is getting back into the fight.Sizemore is...

Oregon Senators Unveil Plans for Uninsured, Catastrophic Care

Jul 7 2006 // Oregon Sens. Ron Wyden and Gordon Smith joined forces behind a proposal aimed at helping uninsured people get health coverage and those with insurance avoid financial ruin from a catastrophic illness.Smith and Wyden say...

Oregon Orders Company to Stop Selling Insurance Without a License

Jul 7 2006 // Oregon’s Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS) has ordered a Connecticut company to stop selling insurance in Oregon without a license.Golf Marketing Worldwide LLC, on its Web site, offers...

Oregon Legislators Approve Package of Salmon Fishing Aid

Jun 26 2006 // Oregon will provide as much as $3.2 million to help the state’s fishermen hurt by federal restrictions on commercial salmon fishing, legislators decided.The Legislative Emergency Board voted to set aside $2.2 million...

Professional Insurance Agents of Oregon/Idaho Elect Board Members, Announce Award Winners

Jun 20 2006 // The Professional Insurance Agents of Oregon/Idaho (PIA) recently held their 39th Annual Convention and Trade Show. Association members elected a new board of directors and gave out a number of awards. John Desmarteau,...

High court agrees to hear appeal in $80 million tobacco case settlement

Jun 19 2006 // The Supreme Court said this month it will decide if tobacco giant Philip Morris must pay nearly $80 million in damages to the family of a longtime smoker, a case that could shield companies from large jury awards if the...

Allstate Dropping Most Earthquake Insurance Nationwide

Jun 5 2006 // Allstate Insurance Co. says it is dropping earthquake insurance to most of its 407,000 quake customers nationwide as a part of a larger move to reduce exposure to catastrophic losses.Allstate Spokesman Mike Siemienas in...

High Court Agrees to Hear Appeal in $80M Tobacco Case Settlement

Jun 1 2006 // The Supreme Court said Tuesday it will decide if tobacco giant Philip Morris must pay nearly $80 million in damages to the family of a longtime smoker, a case that could shield companies from large jury awards if the...

Lowart Joins Oregon Mutual as Marketing Manager

May 16 2006 // Oregon Mutual Insurance Co. has announced that Karen Lowart has been named agency marketing manager in the Central and Northern Valley region in California. Lowart joins OMI with a strong insurance background, having...

Cramer & Giles Acquired by Beecher Carlson

May 5 2006 // Eugene-Oregon-based Cramer & Giles Insurance Inc. has been acquired by Beecher Carlson, an insurance brokerage and risk management consulting firm headquartered in Atlanta. Cramer & Giles has been merged with...