Plexus Points: Insurance stories we're reading

At The Plexus Groupe, we love reading about insurance. And as you confidently stride into the work week, here are seven stories about this fascinating business that you'll want to check out:
-- The flooding in Houston has policyholders on the horn with their insurance companies.

-- Earthquake insurance can be quite pricey for Bay Area homeowners, with high premiums and deductibles hurdles for some potential buyers.

-- El Niño "hits the poorer areas of the world hardest," an executive at a leading reinsurer told The Economist in a lengthy feature on the global weather pattern associated with increased warming.

-- Negative interest rates in Japan are negatively impacting the country's top life insurer, the firm's president told The Wall Street Journal.

-- Homeowners insurance could come in handy if facing a defamation suit.

-- A closer look at how the Affordable Care Act has expanded the access to health coverage.

-- A data breach is covered by a commercial general liability policy, an appeals court in Virginia declared last week.