Megapolis Insurance

A 32-year-old man is denying charges filed against him after he reportedly passed out while driving and crashed his car into a Walmart in Billings, Mont., putting a hole in an outside wall.

The Billings Gazette reports Steven James Barnhart pleaded not guilty Thursday to felony criminal endangerment, misdemeanor driving under the influence and driving without a license or insurance.

District Judge Susan Watters reduced Barnharts bond from $75,000 to $35,000.

Prosecutors allege Barnhart was drinking vodka while driving with three teenage passengers on Jan. 10. Court records say he passed out while driving through the parking lot and the car accelerated to 50 or 60 mph before smashing through a fence and into the side of the store.

Former police detectives now working for Hastings Direct have used forensics information to help convict a 41 year old teacher of insurance fraud.

After a night out drinking, Mr M from Worstershire crashed his £1,500 Volvo on his way home. He then abandoned his car and continued home. The next day when the police came to his house to notify him that his car had been in an accident, Mr M denied driving and said his car had been stolen.

He then filed his claim with Hastings, but the insurer became suspicious after an interview with Mr M and decided to investigate further.

Investigations of his car revealed extensive accident damage, but no evidence of a break in. The matter was then referred to the Worcestershire police, and a forensic examination later showed Mr Ms DNA on the cars air bag, proving he had been driving at the time of the accident.

All Hastings could tell News Insurances was that Mr M received a “six month sentence in Worcester Magistrates Court”. No f

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If you are one of those individuals who feel somewhat guilty about not visiting your doctor for a regular check up you may wonder just how far you can push it. Has it been ten years since you have set foot in a doctor’s office? That is probably a little too long to go without at least getting a general physical exam. If you do not feel sick and do not feel particularly excited at the prospect of making, and keeping, a doctor’s appointment, you may realize that you are likely doing your health a disservice by not visiting him or her more consistently.

Why Check Ups Matter

If you do not feel like anything is wrong and you stick to your weekly exercise routine, why waste the doctor’s time as well as your own? So what if it has been five years since your last visit? That is a little bit better than going for ten years, but it is still a problem. Or is it? If you feel fine, there is no reason to bother. It may not be necessary, or convenient, to get to the doctor once a year, but by letting more time than that lapse between check ups you could be subjecting yourself to health conditions that could be curtailed or even avoided with regular doctor’s visits.

You do not have to visit your physician exactly once per year on the same day.

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In today’s headlines, reports that New York seniors are experiencing reduced prescription coverage and more California patients are being added to the health insurance rolls:  

Kaiser Health News: Insuring Your Health: Work Insurance Often Offers Coverage For Programs To Stop Smoking In her latest Kaiser Health News consumer column, Michelle Andrews reports: “Seventy percent of smokers say they’d like to quit, and now, just three days into the new year, many may already be struggling to stick to their resolution to make 2012 a smoke-free year. If quitting were easy, after all, chances are good that nearly one in five adults wouldn’t still be smokers, a figure that hasn’t budged much in several years” (Andrews, 1/3).

In case you missed these stories, here is a roundup of recent KHN articles:

Kaiser Health News: Connecticut Drops Insurers From Medicaid Kaiser Health News staff writer Phil Galewitz, working in collaboration with USA Today, reports: “In the past decade, most states have turned Medicaid over to private plans with hopes they could control costs and improve care. Nearl

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