Latest Washington Headlines

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

McDonald’s Has Friends in High Places in High-Stakes Labor Fight

Dec 12 2019 // In a television commercial that’s become part of the lore surrounding Donald Trump’s affinity for McDonald’s Corp., he embraced a purple, lumpy denizen of the fast-food chain’s...

E-Cigarette Makers Lose Legal Challenge to FDA’s Regulatory Authority

Dec 10 2019 // U.S. rules for marketing e-cigarettes withstood a legal challenge by a maker of the devices and an industry group.A federal appeals court in Washington upheld the Food and Drug Administration’s regulatory authority...

Washington Roofer Claiming He Was Too Injured to Work Faces Felony Charge

Dec 9 2019 // A Federal Way, Wash., man faces a felony theft charge after state investigators caught him working on a roof, despite the fact he was getting workers’ comp payments and claiming he was too injured to work.José...

Alliant Acquires Buck & Affiliates in Washington

Dec 3 2019 // Alliant Insurance Services Inc. has acquired Spokane, Wash-based Buck & Affiliates. Gary Buck, president and CEO, along with the entire Buck & Affiliates team, will join Alliant and continue serving clients from...

Elderly Washington Woman Dies After Drop by Ambulance Workers, Suit Charges

Dec 2 2019 // The family of a 92-year-old Vancouver, Wash., woman who died after ambulance workers who were transporting her allegedly dropped her onto a sidewalk has filed a $4 million lawsuit.The lawsuit was filed in Multnomah County...

Hospital in Washington Addresses Mold Infections, Deaths

Dec 2 2019 // Executives at a Washington state children’s hospital have found additional patient deaths from a mold infection after taking a closer look at their records.Seattle Children’s CEO Jeff Sperring announced in late...

Washington Insurance Commissioner Fines UnitedHealthcare $30,000

Dec 2 2019 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler took disciplinary action in October against insurance companies, agents and brokers who violated state insurance regulations.A summary of cases is below. UnitedHealthcare of...

Washington Workers’ Comp Rates Dropping Third Straight Year

Dec 2 2019 // The price of workers’ compensation insurance is dropping in Washington for the third consecutive year.The Washington Department of Labor & Industries in late November announced a 0.8% decrease in the average...

$8.5M in Washington Foster Care Sex Abuse Case

Nov 26 2019 // Washington state will pay two children $8.5 million after they claimed the state Department of Social and Health Services failed to protect them from sexual abuse by their foster parent. The children sued the agency in...

Washington Insurance Commissioner Fines UnitedHealthcare $30,000

Nov 25 2019 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler took disciplinary action in October against insurance companies, agents and brokers who violated state insurance regulations.A summary of cases of interest to Washington...

Washington Workers’ Comp Rates Dropping Third Straight Year

Nov 25 2019 // The price of workers’ compensation insurance is dropping in Washington for the third consecutive year.The Washington Department of Labor & Industries on Monday announced a 0.8% decrease in the average amount...

Magnitude 3.5 Earthquake Confirmed in Washington

Nov 22 2019 // The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network confirmed a magnitude 3.5 earthquake struck the region near Coulee City and Grand Coulee Dam in eastern Washington state. The network reported the earthquake struck about 8:48 on...

Hospital in Washington Addresses Mold Infections, Deaths

Nov 22 2019 // Executives at a Washington state children’s hospital have found additional patient deaths from a mold infection after taking a closer look at their records.KING-TV reported Tuesday that Seattle Children’s CEO...

Elderly Washington Woman Dies After Drop by Ambulance Workers, Suit Charges

Nov 21 2019 // The family of a 92-year-old Vancouver, Wash. woman who died after ambulance workers who were transporting her allegedly dropped her onto a sidewalk has filed a $4 million lawsuit.The Oregonian/OregonLive reported the...

Science, Enforcement Lag as Car Accidents, Claims Rise in Legal Cannabis States

Nov 18 2019 // Car crashes in the first three states to legalize recreational marijuana have soared as law enforcement and regulators struggle to define driving high, let alone determine how to fight it.Colorado, Oregon, and Washington...

Reuters Report: How Plaintiff Lawyers Help Corporate America Keep Its Secrets

Nov 8 2019 // Paula Lawlor was sifting through piles of internal General Motors Co. documents in a hotel room outside of Los Angeles when she hit pay dirt: Company records showing that GM knew for years that stronger roofs on its...

California Probing Facebook, Says Social Media Company Stonewalling

Nov 7 2019 // California revealed for the first time an 18-month investigation into Facebook Inc.’s privacy practices and accused the social media giant on Wednesday of hampering the probe by failing to turn over emails from Chief...

U.S. Targets Sanction-Evading Shipping Firms, Enlists Help from Insurers, Banks

Nov 6 2019 // The United States will target shipping companies that are in breach of sanctions and aggressively enforce measures across the globe to clamp down on such practices, a top U.S. official said on Wednesday.In one of the...

Philadelphia Fire Highlights Dangers of Old Infrastructure at U.S. Refineries

Nov 6 2019 // How did a piece of piping installed when Richard Nixon was U.S. president go without once being checked before leading to a fire that devastated the East Coast’s largest and oldest oil refinery?That’s a...

PEMCO in Washington Names Purcell Chief Information Officer

Nov 5 2019 // PEMCO Mutual Insurance has named Chris Purcell to the executive team as vice president and chief information officer. Purcell will continue to advance the organization’s digital and technology strategies. Purcell...