Игроки всегда ценят удобный и стабильный доступ к играм. Для этого идеально подходит зеркало Вавады, которое позволяет обходить любые ограничения, обеспечивая доступ ко всем бонусам и слотам.

TRIA Advocates Testify in Favor of Long-Term Extension

Posted on by

On Tuesday, February 25, the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee held a hearing on “Reauthorizing TRIA: The State of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Market.” Witnesses from several industry groups advocated for a long-term, if not permanent, extension of the program beyond its current deadline of December 31, 2014.

“The availability and affordability of adequate insurance coverage for acts of terrorism is not only an insurance issue, but an economic one,” said RIMS President Carolyn Snow. “By providing a backstop, and assuming some of the market terrorism risk as a reinsurer, the federal government has freed up capacity in the private market that would not otherwise exist.”

Douglas Elliot, president of commercial markets for The Hartford Financial Services Group, and speaking on behalf of the American Insurance Association, argued against any sweeping changes to the current TRIA program. “A number of proposals that have been discussed could-in the name of increasing private market capacity for terrorism risk-actually lead the industry to a tipping point beyond which individual insurers would need to make difficult decisions to safeguard a company’s financial condition instead of maintaining the current level of exposure to catastrophic terrorism risk.”

Many witnesses, including W. Edward Walter, president and CEO of Host Hotels & Resorts, on behalf of the Coalition to Insure Against Terrorism, addressed the effect that TRIA’s uncertainty will have on the lending industry. “The lack of clarity around this issue will likely slow the pace of new financing, especially in the case of properties that are perceived to be a higher risk of terrorist attacks such as high profile buildings and real estate generally located in key gateway urban markets.”

When asked for the ideal duration of a TRIA extension, all of the witnesses asked for a permanent solution with ten years being a minimum timeframe for an extension.

This is the second hearing that the Senate Banking Committee has held on the issue. Committee leadership seemed to understand the urgency and expressed a desire to move on the issue sooner rather than later; however, House leadership has expressed a desire to make changes to the legislation which could slow action on an extension as those changes are debated.

Drought Claiming California Crops

Posted on by

While many California farmers are taking a wait-and-see approach regarding future rainfall, some almond growers are moving ahead with the removal of mature trees. But much more is at risk, including jobs and agricultural products for the rest of the country.

California grows about half of all U.S. fruits and vegetables, mostly in the Central Valley region. It also ranks as the top farm state by annual value of agricultural products. Crops exclusive to California are almonds, dates, figs, grapes for raisins, pomegranates, olives, peaches, pistachios, plums, rice, walnuts, kiwi fruit and clover seed.

In January, Gov. Jerry Brown declared a drought emergency, and this month President Obama announced relief aid for California farmers and ranchers. Because of the severity of the ongoing drought, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation as well as the State Water Project said there would be no water for Central Valley farmers and ranchers. According to the California Farm Water Coalition, it is expected that about 2 million acres in the San Joaquin Valley will receive no water this year.

“We estimate that more than 500,000 acres of farmland will be idled this year due to water supply shortages,” Mike Wade, executive director of the California Farm Water Coalition said in a statement. He added that agricultural water supply shortages “harm more than just the farms that produce hundreds of varieties of food, fiber and nursery products. Unemployment may hit 15,000 seasonal and full time agricultural workers if this year’s drought has the kind of impact on the economy that occurred in 2009.

buy prevacid online rxbio.com/images/milestones/jpg/prevacid.html no prescription pharmacy

Water shortages then led to idling of 269,000 acres and over 7,400 workers, about half of the expected impact of this year’s drought.

buy synthroid online rxbio.com/images/milestones/jpg/synthroid.html no prescription pharmacy

”

       Graphics/California Farm Water Coalition

Barry Baker of Baker Farming Company, which normally grows 5,000 acres of almonds, is one of the growers who is removing trees— 20% of them. The Associated Press reported that Baker calculated that before the summer almond harvest he would need to spend $2.5 million. That includes irrigating orchards with scarce, expensive water and paying to have the trees pruned and sprayed. He would also need to have bee hives brought in to pollinate the blossoms at a cost of nearly 0 an acre.
buy vardenafil online https://royalcitydrugs.com/vardenafil.html no prescription

Not knowing whether there will be any relief, he made the decision to go ahead and remove the trees.

Once removed, the trees are being turned into wood chips and taken to power plants for bio fuel. Tim Lynch of Agra Marketing Group said power plants in the state currently have almost more wood chips from almond trees than they can handle.

The Agricultural Marketing Resource Center reports that California is the only state producing almonds commercially. The state’s 2012 almond crop totaled 2.0 billion pounds, a 2% drop from the previous year and was valued at $4.3 billion. Per person consumption of almonds in the United States has generally been increasing and reached 1.8 pounds in 2011, according to the Almond Board of California.

buy spiriva inhaler online rxbio.com/images/milestones/jpg/spiriva-inhaler.html no prescription pharmacy

The United States is the largest producer of almonds, harvesting 80% of the world’s crop, followed by the European Union – 27, of which Spain, and Australia each harvest 6%, the organization said.

U.S. Fraud Up, Prevention Down

Posted on by

Although fraud has increased for U.S. organizations in the past two years—45% of U.S. organizations experienced fraud, compared to a global average of 37%—companies are doing less to prevent fraud than in 2011, according to a survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

The Global Economic Crime Survey 2014 found that the less proactive approach was consistent with the upward trend in economic crime in most fraud categories since 2011. Slightly more than half (53%) of organizations performed fraud risk assessments annually or more often, a significant drop from 70% of organizations that performed fraud risk assessments annually or more in 2011.

The report also found that the most serious economic crime experienced by U.S. respondents within the past 24 months was more likely committed internally (50%) than externally, (44%), but that external fraudsters are closing the gap. This trend is consistent with more organizations engaging in business opportunities in high-risk markets.

“The United States has proved to be fertile ground for domestic economic crime in recent years. Catastrophic coastal events on the Eastern and Gulf coasts have generated rampant insurance fraud that squanders taxpayer dollars and undermines community relief and reconstruction efforts. Farther inland, natural gas exploration and fracking have led to boom towns sprouting overnight in places like North Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, and Texas. Many of these towns do not have the infrastructure or governance capability to handle the influx of people, and crime, that inevitably accompany boom-town dynamics.

Land lease and mineral rights agreements, zoning ordinances, permits, and licenses have become particularly vulnerable to exploitation.” PwC Global Economic Crime Survey 2014

According to the report:

• More than half of U.S. organizations that experienced fraud in the past two years reported increased occurrences.

• 67% of U.S. respondents said their organizations now have, or plan to have operations in high-risk markets, compared to only 58% of global respondents.

• 57% of U.S. respondents said their organizations pursued opportunities in markets with high-levels of corruption risk within the past 24 months, versus 38% of global respondents.

Fraud levels are climbing:

• 24% of U.S. organizations that reported economic crime experienced accounting fraud in 2009. While this dropped to 16% in 2011, accounting fraud increased to 23% in 2014.

• In 2014, bribery and corruption doubled from 2011 levels of 7%, after dropping by more than a half, to 16% since 2009 PwC said.

CVS Announces Plan to Stop Selling Cigarettes

Posted on by

CVS to Stop Selling Cigarettes

On Feb. 5, CVS Caremark Chief Executive Larry Merlo said, “We’ve come to the decision that cigarettes have no place in an environment where healthcare is being delivered.” The company, he announced, will remove all cigarette and tobacco products from its 7,600 pharmacies nationwide by Oct. 1. The move is expensive, with up to billion in projected lost sales.

But CVS is betting on the long-run gains from doubling down on brand reputation and helping customers to live—and shop—far longer.

President Barack Obama personally took the time out to praise CVS, saying in a statement that the move will help wider efforts to “reduce tobacco-related deaths, cancer, and heart disease, as well as bring down healthcare costs.”

“CVS is now one of a small group of companies that have realized that their reputation is the most valuable asset they have and that building a stronger reputation by avoiding risks to that reputation can create a significant competitive advantage,” said Paul Argenti, professor of corporate communications at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business, in a column for the Harvard Business Review. “From the White House to the American Lung Association, CVS has received kudos for what seems to be a focus on shared value with society rather than the reckless pursuit of revenue at any cost.”

While CVS stock initially dropped the day of the announcement, shares have since risen 2.3%, success further bolstered when the country’s largest drugstore chain reported 2013 revenue of $126.8 billion—up 3% on healthy growth for drug plans and in-store pharmacies offset by weak growth in front-of-store sales.

“Its profit comes increasingly from health plans, which aren’t keen on carcinogens,” Jack Hough wrote in Barron’s. “Consider: CVS’ tobacco decision is expected to subtract six to nine cents from its yearly earnings per share. But a prescription deal with the Federal Employee Health Program, which expires at year’s end, is worth 16 cents to 21 cents a share, estimates investment bank Mizuho Securities. For CVS, a good chance at renewal just became better, and there’s plenty more business to be won.”

In Forbes’ CMO Shift blog, brand consultant Scott Davis wrote:

The $2 billion decision to boldly dump tobacco sends CVS’ boldest signal of commitment to the brand and to where it sees its future growth; it’s an unprecedented move and one that is wickedly smart. CVS is putting its money where its brand is, betting that this first mover advantage will pay off. I say “first mover” because no one truly owns health and wellness. Sixteen thousand health and wellness apps were downloaded last year.

Over $1.4 billion was spent by people trying to learn more about the topic. The overall category is heading to $1 trillion in the next 3-5 years and the timing is right for someone to step in and lead the dialog and become the Amazon of health and wellness. Why not CVS?

Indeed, CVS has spent considerable time and money extending the legacy of pharmacists as community health experts by adding over 800 MinuteClinic walk-in facilities. In doing so, the company has become the largest U.S. pharmacy healthcare provider.

The chain’s competitors are also branching into anti-smoking efforts as they expand their role in the wellness market. Walgreens recently unveiled a partnership with GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare to launch a free, Internet-based smoking cessation program called Sponsorship to Quit.

Overall U.S. cigarette sales fell 31.3% from 2003 to 2013, according to Euromonitor International. Many health officials hope that the move will help continue to decrease the number of smokers and smoking-related deaths in the U.S. “I think CVS recognized that it was just paradoxical to be both a seller of deadly products and a healthcare provider,” U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Thomas Frieden told Reuters.

Working to build and maintain a strong reputation also boosts the bottom line. Studies from Argenti and a range of other researchers suggest that companies with a strong reputation enjoy price advantages, being able to negotiate lower prices with suppliers and higher charges to customers. They can also recruit better employees, have more stable revenues and, “when something bad happens, they are given the benefit of the doubt by their stakeholders.” Further, “highly reputed companies are more stable, which means they have higher market valuation and stock price over the long term and greater loyalty of their investors, which leads to less volatility,” according to Argenti.

Convenience stores account for 75% of cigarette sales nationwide, so the tobacco industry has yet to express concern about prospective losses from drugstore sales. But Dr. Richard Wender of the American Cancer Society said CVS’s move would have an effect. “Every time we make it more difficult to purchase a pack of cigarettes, someone quits,” he told Reuters. So far, CVS is betting on that for patients’ health, and its own.