State lawmakers in Connecticut are considering legislation that would presume firefighters who have cancer most likely got it from their jobs, easing claims for insurance or workers’ compensation. The science supports firefighters’ argument, Waterbury Deputy Chief Richard Hart, political affairs … Source: Claims Journal

Prescription drugs spending jumped 13 percent last year, the biggest annual increase since 2003, according to the nation’s largest pharmacy benefits manager. Express Scripts Holding Co. said that the jump was fueled in part by pricey specialty drugs that accounted … Source: Claims Journal

General Motors Co. investors urged a judge to let their lawsuit proceed against the automaker’s board that they say was asleep at the switch while the company produced cars with faulty ignition systems that led to fatal accidents. More than … Source: Claims Journal

Aircraft makers are urging a ban on bulk lithium battery shipments on passenger planes, calling the threat of fires “an unacceptable risk,” according to an industry position paper obtained by The Associated Press. The International Coordination Council of Aerospace Industry … Source: Claims Journal

Allied Insurance is giving employees lots of notice about job cutbacks at its regional office in Lincoln. The Lincoln Journal Star reports that 140 jobs will be eliminated in claims and customer service between 2017 and 2020. That will slice … Source: Claims Journal

A Tennessee judge has ruled that a state law that caps the amount of money someone can win in a personal injury lawsuit for noneconomic damages is unconstitutional. The Times Free Press reports that on Monday, Hamilton County Circuit Judge … Source: Claims Journal

BP has abruptly switched legal strategies—again—in the multibillion-dollar liability fight stemming from the April 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. The company dropped a campaign to oust a settlement administrator it had accused of tolerating waste and fraud. The move … Source: Claims Journal

A Texas-based insurance company has prevailed in the first lawsuit to go to trial over claims from two massive hailstorms in Hidalgo County, Texas, in 2012. The 12-member jury in Amaro v. National Lloyds found that National Lloyds Insurance Co. … Source: Claims Journal

Federal disaster relief officials are keeping a closer eye on companies that help it provide flood insurance, following allegations by Hurricane Sandy victims that claims were denied or underpaid based on manipulated engineering reports. A spokesman for the Federal Emergency … Source: Claims Journal

The director of a movie about musician Gregg Allman pleaded guilty in a train crash that killed a camera assistant and injured six film workers, and prosecutors in exchange dropped charges against his wife and business partner. The case is … Source: Claims Journal