| Feds allege Mo. funeral scheme could cost $600M
Sutton was president and chief financial officer of National Prearranged Services Inc. and a director of two of its affiliated life insurance companies, all of which collapsed financially last year. The indictment unsealed Friday alleges a decade-long scheme in which officials at National Prearranged Services altered documents to change the terms and beneficiaries of their customers' prepaid funeral contracts. The St. Louis-based company is accused of using various financial transactions — often involving its Austin, Texas-based affiliates, Lincoln Memorial Life and Memorial Service Life — to siphon money from customers' accounts. It then sent reports to funeral homes showing false account balances, the indictment said. Sutton, 63, of Chesterfield, faces eight mail or wire fraud charges, each punishable by up to 20 years in prison and fines of $250,000, and one money laundering count that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Question of hail insurance resurfaces after storm
Like other farmers in the aftermath of a damaging hailstorm, Cook will ponder anew the necessity of carrying hail damage insurance.
"I haven't carried hail insurance in the 50 years that I've farmed, but I haven't had this kind of damage before," the 72-year-old Cook said. "You can always ask yourself that question after a storm. But I'll be OK. I've had enough good years and I'll be back farming next year." But he added, "I'm pretty sure I'll recommend to my three sons that they buy hail insurance in the future. At their ages and stages of life, they should have it."
Sunday's hailstorm cut like a sharp knife along a 10- to 15-mile corridor from Webster to Grundy counties, through some of the most productive farmland in Iowa.
The portion of Cook's farms hit hardest have a crop suitability rating of 84, which puts it in the high end of soil productivity.
Schnurman: Employers' decades of healthcare experience should be
The Dallas chipmaker has a higher insurance premium for smokers, on-site walking programs and fitness centers, and an outside company to reach out to diabetics. This year, for the fifth time, it won a national award for the way it promotes healthy lifestyles for its employees. But you don’t see President Barack Obama touring TI or similar companies, dissecting the best practices of these key players in the American health system. So far, most of the high-profile attention has gone to places like the Cleveland and Mayo clinics, medical providers that offer top-notch treatment at a lower cost. It’s time to start drawing employers into the public discussion, and not just because they provide health coverage for more than half of all Americans.
China's BoCom eyes insurance business this yr-exec
SS), China's fifth-biggest lender, expects to start its insurance business this year, Vice President Dicky Yip said on Wednesday. Yip, however, declined to provide details of the plan on the sidelines of a press briefing in Shanghai. BoCom plans to buy a stake in China Life-CMG Insurance Co, a venture between China Life Insurance Co Ltd (2628.HK) and Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA.AX), official media have reported. Chinese lenders have been eager to expand into non-banking financial businesses to diversify revenue streams. BoCom already owns a leasing unit, a trust subsidiary and a fund venture with Schroders Plc (SDR.L), and is also seeking a brokerage licence. As part of efforts to strengthen consumer banking, BoCom rolled out OTO wealth-management services three years ago targeting wealthy clients.
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