Muara Teweh!

(WebMD) Scientists report promising results with a male contraceptive drug tested on rats.

The drug, called Adjudin, is a long way from human use. But lab tests on rats showed no signs of side effects, and the drug’s effects wore off in 20 weeks.

The researchers included Chuen-yan Cheng, PhD, of the Population Council’s Center for Biomedical Research. The Population Council is a New York-based international nonprofit organization that conducts biomedical, social science, and public health research. » Read more after the jump →

A new strain of vaccine-resistant H5N1 bird flu virus has emerged in China and is spreading through southeast Asia, Hong Kong researchers report.

“The implications are that current control measures are ineffective with dealing with the evolutionary changes that H5N1 undergoes,” warned Dr. Yi Guan, director of the State Key Laboratory of Emerging Diseases at the University of Hong Kong and lead author of a report in this week’s issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. » Read more after the jump →

State investigators are trying to stop a hot scam: New York and New Jersey drivers flocking to North Carolina for cheaper auto insurance.

The country’s fifth-lowest insurance rates draw them here, and the state does not require a North Carolina driver’s license or proof of address to register vehicles and get tags.

State officials say this rapidly growing form of insurance fraud has prompted hundreds of complaints in recent months, mostly from residents in the Northeast tattling on their neighbors. Scammers are hard to find, and officials are launching a multistate task force. » Read more after the jump →

During the past 10 years, the Canadian automobile insurance industry’s underwriting results have changed dramatically as reflected by the significant variations in the direct loss ratio according to a special report by A.M. Best Co.

From 1996 to 1998, the industry direct loss ratio remained flat at around 75. Premiums did not grow and claims incurred remained steady. In contrast to the pattern of development that was about to occur over the next seven years, the direct loss ratio in Ontario was below the industry average at around 72. Alberta, Quebec and the Atlantic provinces were experiencing above-average loss ratios; however, the direct loss ratio in Alberta was heading in the right direction. » Read more after the jump →

A Scottish insurance broker will be sentenced today for fraudulently selling £11m of bogus cover, leaving 43,000 people with worthless policies. John Kirke Walker, 57, from Midlothian, who ran Tribune Risk and Insurance Services in Eskbank, on the outskirts of Edinburgh, claimed approved firms were underwriting his policies when they were not doing so.

The business, which employed more than 100 people at the height of its success, had been hit badly by the terror attacks on September 11 2001, leading to the two-year scam. Walker’s actions meant that when some customers came to make claims, they were left with no insurance and had to find money for hefty bills. » Read more after the jump →

Did you ever consider a career in the insurance industry?

Well, that’s exactly the problem, says Jeff Stephens, the outreach manager for the recently-established

California Insurance Careers Program.

Fortunately, Solano Community College has become a pioneer in solving that problem and in connecting students with interesting, high-paying jobs.

“Everyone has their reservations about entering the (insurance) field because of their misconceptions,” said Stephens. Most people don’t realize that the insurance industry goes far beyond insurance sales people, he said. » Read more after the jump →

A 9th Circuit ruling on an overtime case was a deep disappointment — and a bit of a surprise — to employment plaintiffs lawyers on Thursday.

The class action against Farmer’s Insurance Exchange sought overtime pay for claims adjusters allegedly misclassified as exempt, and was modeled on suits that have brought about plaintiff verdicts and high-dollar settlements in state court. But the 9th Circuit left no doubt that it found every member of the class to be exempt. » Read more after the jump →