Latest USA Headlines

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

Judge Dismisses California Suit Against Apple Over Worker Searches

Nov 9 2015 // Apple Inc. persuaded a judge to throw out a lawsuit by employees of the company’s retail stores in California seeking back pay for time spent in “demoralizing” security searches when they left work for...

VW Engineers Admit Rigging CO2 Emissions over Job Fears: Report

Nov 9 2015 // Several Volkswagen engineers have admitted manipulating carbon dioxide emissions data because goals set by former Chief Executive Martin Winterkorn were difficult to achieve, reported Bild am Sonntag, the Berlin-based...

All Web Leads to Acquire Bankrate’s Insurance Division

Nov 9 2015 // Austin, Texas-based All Web Leads (AWL), a Genstar Capital portfolio company, announced an agreement to acquire insuranceQuotes.com, Bankrate Inc.’s insurance division.The total transaction purchase price is $165...

Officials: Most Poultry Farms Affected by Bird Flu Can Restock

Nov 8 2015 // Most commercial chicken and turkey farms that were infected by the bird flu have been cleared to restock, agriculture officials said, but scientists still will keep a close eye on migrating birds and test thousands to see...

Supreme Court to Review Religious Groups’ Claims Over Obamacare Birth Control Benefit

Nov 6 2015 // The U.S. Supreme Court scheduled a new showdown over Obamacare and religious rights, agreeing to hear contentions by faith-based groups that they shouldn’t have to facilitate what they consider to be immoral...

Russian Air Crash Bomb Theories Highlight Insider Threat to Aviation Security

Nov 6 2015 // The possibility that Islamic terrorists smuggled a bomb onto a Russian jet flying home from Egypt highlights a new area of worry for aviation security: the insider threat.Instead of focusing on a small cadre of al-Qaeda...

Illinois Supreme Court Voids $10.1B Philip Morris ‘Light’ Verdict

Nov 5 2015 // The Illinois Supreme Court on Nov. 4 threw out a $10.1 billion verdict against Philip Morris USA in a long-running lawsuit accusing the Altria Group Inc. unit of misleading smokers about the health risks of...

2,000 Corn Farmers, Handlers, Exporters Sue Syngenta

Nov 4 2015 // About 2,000 farmers, grain handlers and corn exporters have filed lawsuits against Swiss biotechnology company Syngenta now that a federal judge has ruled their cases have merit to move forward.The lawsuits allege...

Allstate Profit Down in Q3 as Auto Claims Rise

Nov 4 2015 // Allstate Corp., the largest publicly traded U.S. car and home insurer, said third-quarter profit slipped 17 percent as claims rose and policy growth slowed in the automobile insurance business.Net income decreased to $650...

Survey Shows Signs of Midwest Economic Slowdown

Nov 3 2015 // Figures plunged in an October survey of supply managers in nine Midwest and Plains states, the third straight month of declines that suggest a regional economic slowdown, according to a report released on Nov. 2.The...

Top 25 Workers’ Compensation Insurers

Nov 2 2015 // The U.S. workers’ compensation market saw solid gains in 2014, thanks in part to premium increases and favorable claims frequency. This was the fourth consecutive year in which the industry reported improved results,...

El Faro Owner Seeks U.S. Maritime Liability Limit on Death Claims

Nov 2 2015 // The owner of the U.S. cargo ship El Faro that sank in a powerful hurricane off the Bahamas nearly a month ago has filed for protection in Florida federal court from claims it is liable for the deaths of its 33 crew...

Update: Investigators Expected to Quickly Unravel Mystery of Russian Plane Crash

Nov 2 2015 // Investigators probing the crash of an Airbus Group SE jetliner in Egypt will focus on how a plane built to withstand extreme turbulence and equipped with devices meant to prevent flight maneuvers that might break it apart...

US and UK to Hold Joint Exercise to Test Cyber Security of Global Financial Firms

Nov 2 2015 // The US and British governments will hold a joint exercise to test cyber security and information sharing arrangements involving global financial institutions, according to the UK National Computer Emergency Response Team...

Farmers Insurance Facing Possible Class Action by ‘Hundreds’ of Female Attorneys

Nov 2 2015 // An attorney representing a woman suing Farmers Insurance for discriminatory practices filed a motion in mid-October seeking class action status in a suit she says could potentially encompass 300 female attorneys.The...

Damage Estimates Rising From South Carolina’s ‘Record-Breaking’ Storm

Nov 2 2015 // The potential exposure home insurers in South Carolina face from the early October storm that flooded the state is estimated to be over $18 billion, according to catastrophe modeling firm CoreLogic.Richland County had the...

Guy Carpenter Says Wildfire Losses May Exceed $1.75B

Nov 2 2015 // A briefing from Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC in late October shows more than 9 million acres were burned by wildfires so far this year, most of that occurring in the Western U.S, and that insured losses from wildfires...

Outlook for Homeowners Insurance Market Improves: Report

Nov 2 2015 // The outlook for the U.S. homeowners market has improved over last year thanks in part to rate increases and lower reinsurance costs, according to reinsurance intermediary Aon Benfield.A new report by Aon Benfield Analytics...

Economics of Climate Change, Climate Fiction and Climate Control

Oct 29 2015 // With fresh news out on the global economic cost of climate change, an enticing climate fiction contest and a sweet victory for this column, it would take until Christmas to individually cover it all in a bimonthly space.So...

Atlantic Hurricane Season Enters Final Stretch with No-Hit Record Intact

Oct 29 2015 // It has been 10 years since a major hurricane hit the U.S., and as the Atlantic season staggers into its last month, every day that passes seems certain to extend that record streak.Wilma was the last major system, striking...