A support group and a lab in the St. Louis area provide resources for people with the allergy to mammal products — and evidence that its effects can be reversed.
Missouri Farm Bureau Agent Jason Ginder stands outside of his office in New Madrid, Mo. Although major earthquakes wiped out the town in the early 1800s, most New Madrid citizens do not have earthquake insurance today. Credit: Hannah Schuh, Columbia Missourian
There has been plenty of news about the skyrocketing cost of living the last few years. But here's a new one: Desk reporter Harshawn Ratanpal of KBIA in Columbia, Missouri, dug into a massive increase in earthquake insurance policy premiums on the infamous New Madrid fault, a staggering 800% change in just two decades.
This piece is part of a series on the New Madrid fault he's working on with the Desk, and he shared a bit about why it matters to so many people.
Here's Harshawn:
Desk reporter Harshawn Ratanpal (KBIA)
"When a colleague and I visited the town of New Madrid late last year, we wanted to answer why so few people had earthquake insurance. The main takeaway of our first visit was that preparing for the earthquake wasn’t a priority for people. To them, there were bigger issues to deal with: pocketbook and kitchen table issues that affect them much more than fault lines beneath their feet.
But while writing the first piece we published, I knew there were more complicated causes and effects to discuss.
Why is earthquake insurance eight times more expensive than it was in 2000 and why do only about 11% of people have it, down from 60% in 2000? To find out, we reached out to economists, underwriters, government officials and local brokers. The answers to these simple questions were complicated and nuanced.
We found that a mix of factors — including updated risk models, pseudoscientific scares that shook confidence in disaster prediction, and a lack of political will to do much about the issue — created a seemingly endless upward trajectory of price and therefore a downward trend of coverage.
Data from Harshawn's reporting illustrating the rising cost of earthquake insurance in New Madrid. (Chart by CJ Christy with data from Missouri DCI)
Insurance isn’t the most exciting topic, and it can be especially tough to write about something that may not happen for a long time, like a major earthquake. But this story reminded me why I love reporting. I love that we get the opportunity to get lost in a brand new topic, drilling deeper and deeper until we have something groundbreaking to share with all of you.
Thank you for reading and stay tuned for the next piece about New Madrid and its people."
