Hurricane Helene’s Aftermath Sparks Call for National Catastrophic Insurance Fund

As the full extent of Hurricane Helene’s impact continues to unfold, Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a Florida Democrat and former state Emergency Management director, is advocating for a national approach to mitigate the financial burden of catastrophic storms.

In a Fox News interview on Saturday, Moskowitz highlighted legislation he has introduced to establish a national catastrophic insurance fund. The proposed bill aims to alleviate the pressure on insurance companies and ultimately reduce costs for homeowners in disaster-prone areas.

“It would add no money to the deficit,” Moskowitz explained, describing a system where states could purchase bonds to offset the impact of rare, extreme weather events. This approach, he argues, would help distribute the risk more evenly across the nation, rather than concentrating it in a few vulnerable states.

The congressman emphasized the need for a broader risk-sharing strategy, drawing parallels to FEMA’s role in disaster recovery. “Just like FEMA spreads risk around when there’s a big disaster… I think we’re going to have to do the same thing in the insurance market,” he stated.

Moskowitz warned that without such measures, certain areas could become prohibitively expensive for current residents, including retirees in coastal communities.

The proposed legislation would introduce a cap on reinsurance requirements, with federal bonds covering the gap between this cap and the total homeowner damages from a catastrophic event. This mechanism would effectively involve the federal government in guaranteeing a portion of insurance costs when disasters strike.

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