Jobless claims climbed by 19,000 to 348,000 in the period ended Jan. 2.

A California state report finds that health plans need to step up their efforts on treating patients for chronic diseases.

An examination by the Securities and Exchange Commission found that pension fund consultants and other advisors were lax in vetting alternative investments.

The Standard & Poors 500 Index lost 1 percent to 1,774.94 at 3:04 p.m. in New York. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 181.23 points, or 1.1 percent, to 15,747.33 today.